The New Generation: Alex Trey Stella
by CGWolf '13
Summary: (Sequel to The Beginning).(ON HIATUS). When a girl wolf with a mysterious past comes to Jasper Park for hiding, she meets Alex, Trey, and Stella. The three pups of Kate and Humphrey. This meeting began as just a hunt, but has no turned into an adventure full of thrill, romance, and action. Can these wolves make it back home in one piece? And who will they meet along the way?
1. Introductions

**Bold: Author Notes  
**_Italics: Emphasized word unless stated otherwise  
**Bold Italics: Story/Chapter Title**_

**Disclaimer: ****I do not own Alpha & Omega. Crest Animation Productions and Lions Gate Family Entertainment own Alpha & Omega. I only own my original characters.**

******Information On This Chapter: No events take place in this chapter. It is only to introduce the pups and give some information.  
**

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Two years have passed since the adventure that Humphrey, Kate, Lilly, and Garth had all taken with each other. Two years. Eve, Winston, and Tony have all passed away from old age through out the course of those years, leaving Kate, Humphrey, Lilly, and Garth as the new Head-Alphas of the Central pack. That is what the pack was called, now that the East and West were one. Of course, having pups can make that job a bit easier since they could send one with a message if needed. Now that they were parents, taking care of pups was draining the energy out of the four parents. Which meant their stamina wasn't as good as a healthy pup's.

Now, let me give you some descriptions on the physical appearance and a little information about the pups. First, I'll start with Humphrey and Kate's children.

The first, and oldest, pup was their Alpha-ranked daughter, Stella. She was pretty much exactly like Kate. Not just how she acts, but the actual appearance as well. The golden brown fur and matching eye color makes the two look like twins. Humphrey sometimes had trouble telling the difference between Stella and Kate. It didn't help when they both spoke at the same time or pretended to be each other. Of course, being a joke-loving Omega-turned-Alpha, Humphrey couldn't help but laugh when they did that to him.

The next pup is the middle-child of the three. Given an Alpha ranking is Trey. His fur color is grey and white, coming from his father, Humphrey. The golden brown eye color, on the other hand, came from his mother. He likes to walk, sit, and stand with good posture. Most likely because his dream is to be the best Alpha in the pack. He likes showing off his speed and great reflexes to his siblings. His real ambition is to prove that he is a better Alpha than his sister, Stella. Even if it means fighting her. Of course, the two don't take the fights serious because they don't want to inflict injuries on the other. No, they would just see who could pin the other to the ground.

The youngest pup was the Omega-ranked boy, Alex. His looks come directly from his father, Humphrey. The grey and white fur, along with the blue eyes, could make them look like twins, if it wasn't for a small piece missing on his right ear. It's not like that because of some accident or a fight. He was just born that way. Not only was his appearance like his father's. The personality was from Humphrey as well. That means that Alex loves to play with other wolves and will definitely crack a joke when given the opportunity. Of course, that doesn't mean he will joke when in a serious situation. Unless it's too funny to hold back. That's the only exception for him. No jokes at times of seriousness.

Now for the descriptions of Garth and Lilly's pups.

The youngest is their Omega-ranked daughter, Luna. Everything about her comes from Lilly. The white fur, purple-colored eyes, and even the personality. Luna is a very shy girl, like her mother used to be when she was that age. Being very shy also means not talking much. So, don't be expecting her to talk much. She is very caring when she needs to be. Also, Luna doesn't care much for playing with her two siblings, unless she is in a really great mood about something. That's pretty much the only time she will join her brother and sister.

The second-born is their son, Jake who was given the rank of an Alpha wolf. Being with his father a lot is what made him dream of being an Alpha since he was still a pup. As for the looks, they come from his father. Red fur covering his entire body, accompanied by the emerald-green eyes. Being brave, having good strength, and running quick are his specialties. His weakness is coming up with ideas needed for certain situations and thinking quick on his feet.

The eldest child is the daughter, Violet. Also given the rank of Alpha. Her looks come from both Lilly and Garth. Red fur covering her body except for white on the end of her tail, face, stomach, and front paws. The blue eye color was passed down Winston, skipped past Lilly and went to Violet. Being smart helped Violet learn her Alpha techniques quicker than her brother, Jake. Though, even with that, she still isn't that strong or fast. Violets strengths are in her mind, which makes her a quick-thinking wolf.

**Well, that's enough for now. Of course, these aren't the only characters in the story, but I don't want to deal with the other descriptions until they are introduced into the story.  
****You don't have to review on this part, but it would be great to know what you think of the pups.  
The story will begin for real on the next update. So, stay tuned!**


	2. Chapter One

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything. All credit goes to Crest Animation Productions and Lions Gate Family Entertainment. All I own are the original characters.**

**This is where it begins for real. I hope you enjoy! Read and Review, please!**

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_**The New Generation: Alex Trey Stella  
Chapter One**_

Stella panted heavily as she ran beside her Omega brother, Alex. Both had nervous looks on their faces as they dodged around trees, ducked under logs, and jumped off of boulders. The sounds of crackling leaves and snapping twigs could be heard beneath their paws. The two ran as quick as they could. Stella stole a glance behind her to check on her pursuer. No-one was there. Alex took notice of his sister slowing to a stop and stopped himself beside her. The two began catching their breaths at this rest stop. When Alex spoke, his voice sounded exhausted, "Wh—Where is he?"

Stella answered with a less tired sounding voice, "I don't know... We can't stick around here too long. We can't let him catch us."

The two looked around anxiously and nervously; their chaser was nowhere in sight. At least, that's what they thought. Stella's ears twitched when she heard a twig snap. Time seemed to slow as she ducked low, dodging a pounce made by her brother. Time caught up again when Stella and Alex began running away from Trey. Stella stole a look behind her to see Trey already catching up. Stella and Alex were fast. But Trey was faster. His speed and stamina were much better than Stella's and Alex's. Stella looked back to Alex and said, "He's too fast, he'll be on us any second!"

Alex took note of that as he looked behind him to see Trey a few feet away behind them. He looked to his left to see that it went up-hill. Taking a look over his sister's back, he saw that it went down-hill. Alex told Stella, "I've got a plan. Brace yourself for this."

"Brace myself for what?" she almost yelled back.

Alex took a quick look behind them to see Trey about a foot away. As he began to take a swipe at Stella, Alex jumped into his sister's side, knocking them over and rolling down the hill. That caught Trey by surprise, making him slow down as he took time to process that move through his head. Stella and Alex both rolled back up to their paws and continued running. As they ran, Alex looked back at Trey to see he had already began to chase after them. Only, he was at a greater distance away. But now, he and Stella were in a clearing. Grass only. The sound of snapping twigs and breaking leaves were gone, so they had no way of knowing how close Trey was behind them. That was bad. Nothing to dodge around, which meant Trey had the advantage. He just had to run straight for them. Alex looked to Stella and said, "Got us some decent distance between us and him."

She replied, "Yea. Just warn me next time before you pull something like that, genius."

Alex responded, "He almost had you, Stella. I didn't have time to give you a warning."

Trey caught up faster than they thought. They didn't realize it until Stella was tackled from behind, sending her and Trey rolling on the ground. When they stopped, Trey had Stella pinned to the soft-green grass of Jasper Park. Alex stood, watching the scene as Trey held Stella down. He got his face closer to hers before smiling and saying, "You're it, sis."

Alex gave his brother a high paw before both of them took off as Stella got back up to her paws. She chuckled to herself as she began chasing after them in their amazingly fun game of wolf-tag. They loved to play wolf-tag whenever they got a chance. Although Stella wouldn't admit it, she loved when she was "it" because it challenged her to work on her speed by trying to get Trey. When she couldn't do it for sure, the next target was her other brother, Alex. He was just as fast as Stella, so he was still pretty tough to catch. It was just a matter of strategy. Alex and Trey slowed down a little, allowing Stella to get closer so she wasn't chasing too far behind. Once she caught up, they sped up so as not to get tagged. Stella could reach to where her paw was just inches from Alex. Just when she thought she had him, Alex got tackled.

Stella jammed her paws into the grass to immediately come to a stop. Trey kept running, not noticing they had stopped. Stella looked at her youngest brother and started to giggle when she saw her cousin, Luna, on top of him and playfully growling in his face. Alex pretended to be scared, making Stella want to laugh even harder. Luna wagged her tail back and forth as she backed up, letting Alex back to his feet. Trey came back to where Stella and Alex were at, asking, "Hey guys, why did you—" He stopped when he saw his cousin and as his tail started to move, he said, "Oh hey, Luna. Nice to see you."

Luna said, "Nice to see you guys as well. What are you all up to?"

"Playing tag," Stella answered.

"Can we join?" Violet asked as she and Jake approached them, coming to Luna's sides.

Alex answered, "Are you kidding? Of course you can! The more that play, the more fun it is!"

Stella tapped Alex on the shoulder and said, "You're it!" before running away with everyone else. He stood shocked for a second before snapping back to his senses and chasing after them.

Alex, Trey, Stella, Luna, Jake, and Violet all played tag for the next hour or so. Until they heard Kate, Humphrey, Garth, and Lilly calling them to get back home. Garth and Lilly were visiting Kate and Humphrey for the day because they didn't see much of each other now that Garth and Lilly had Alpha duties to attend to for the Eastern side of the Central pack. The six pups decided to make it a race to see who would get home first. Trey and Jake tied for first, Stella got second, Luna third, followed by Violet in fourth place, and finally Alex in dead last. None of them cared who won or lost, they just liked the fun. Trey, Stella, Violet, and Jake event thought it was better than being in Alpha school which had ended a week earlier.

Kate smiled as she saw the pups all breathing heavily after the race they just had. She couldn't help but laugh sometimes at how adorable they were to her. Looking to Lilly, Kate saw that her sister was doing the same. Lilly still had her red and white flower that Garth picked for her. It was still holding her fur back from her eye, which continued making Garth happy. He loved to just look in her purple colored eyes.

Humphrey and Garth were both sitting next to their wives as the last of the pups came inside and sat down, still trying to get their breath back after running all morning. Garth said, "Rest while you can, new Alphas. You've got your first hunt later today."

They had almost forgotten. Jake, Violet, Stella, and Trey had their first caribou hunt today. It had been a week since Alpha school ended and they felt confident they would have a successful hunt. That is, if they get enough rest before then.


	3. Chapter Two

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything. All credit for Alpha and Omega goes to Crest Animation Productions and Lions Gate Family Entertainment. All I own are the original characters and the title of _The New Generation_.**

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**_The New Generation: Alex Trey Stella_**

**_Chapter Two_**

Trey, Stella, Jake, and Violet all laid down to get some rest. None of them could sleep, knowing that they were to have their first hunt today. But they at least got some energy back after all the running and laughing they had done earlier. They all hoped it would be enough to have a successful hunt. Now that it is time to leave for the hunt. Humphrey and Lilly watch over Alex and Luna as Kate and Garth lead the others to a cliff over-looking the hunting grounds. Kate and Garth were reviewing them on what they learned to make sure they were ready.

Garth finished the review with the final question, "Which caribou are the primary targets?"

They four wolves answered in unison, "Weakest if possible."

Kate and Garth both smiled and both spoke at the same time, "You are ready."

Stella, Violet, Jake, and Trey cheered together giving high paws all around. After the short moment of celebration, they stood there in silence looking at Kate and Garth for a minute. Kate asked, "What are you waiting for? Go ahead and start your first hunt, Alphas."

Once the four took off, Kate and Garth couldn't help but chuckle. They laid down on the cliff they were at and looked below. They started a conversation to pass the time until the pups got down to the grounds. Kate went first, "Time goes by so fast, doesn't it?"

Garth asked, "Yea. It just seems like yesterday when I had my first hunt."

Kate said, "At least yours didn't end in failure..."

Images flashed through her head about that day. She, Candu, and Hutch low in the grass. Kate noticing the Eastern wolves also hiding. They weren't supposed to be in the Western hunting grounds back then. That was when the two territories were still separated. Before Garth and Lilly got the packs united by their undying love for each other. Kate's first hunt ended in failure because the Eastern hunters intruded in to their territory. They would have been able to eat caribou that night if the caribou hadn't been chased away.

Kate lowered her head, remembering that evening when they had to eat left-overs from the night before. Garth looked to her and asked if she was okay.

"Yea. I'm fine."

Kate said that with complete honesty. That had happened years ago, and as she liked to say, it is not good to live in the past. Kate's eyes glanced down at the hunting grounds to see the four pups finally make it there. She and Garth stood up to watch the first hunting attempt.

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Stella, Violet, Jake, and Trey crouched low in the grass, all hiding so well that it looked as if this was going to be a successful attempt. Once the four got close enough to the caribou, they split up in pairs. Stella and Trey planned ahead and said they would work together on one caribou while Violet and Jake took down another. Crawling through the grass, no sound could be heard but the footsteps of random caribou walking around for more grass to graze. The two pairs split up, going to opposite sides of the valley as to not interrupt the other group.

Stella and Trey hid side-by-side, crouched in the grass as they saw a caribou walking in one direction. Trey whispered as quietly as he could, "Which one looks weakest to you?"

Stella carefully looked around, checking on each caribou. As she did this, she thought,_ That one definitely isn't weak. No, that's probably the strongest one. _Trey was about to ask again before Stella stopped him and pointed at a caribou that looked sick. She whispered, "That looks like the oldest one, which means it's most likely the weakest."

Trey nodded in agreement. The two stalked towards it with complete and utter silence.

Jake and Violet were doing the same, already stalking towards another caribou that looked already looked injured. From the looks of it, its legs were probably healing. Violet smiled and whispered to her brother, "Injured legs. Can this be any easier?"

Jake kept himself from chuckling at that, so as not to let the caribou hear him. He and Violet decided that Jake would be the one to attack, because they both knew that Jake was the faster and stronger Alpha. Violet was going to stay behind, at least until Jake had the caribou in his grasp. Violet whispered, "Try to knock it over to make it even easier for yourself."

Jake nodded and, after receiving a pat on the back along with a wish of good luck, he stalked forward. He licked his lips, eagerly waiting for the taste of blood. He smiled, knowing how easy this was going to be, his target having injured legs was going to make this too easy. But, he knew they couldn't be too safe on having the fast runner in case the caribou was more healed than they expected.

Trey and Stella stalked close enough to the caribou to find that it was going to be a bit easier than they thought. This target was large, which meant it was going to be slower than the others. Not only that, but it was also ill. Stella whispered to her brother, "Don't you feel sort of sorry for the caribou?"

He looked at her and said back, "Yea, a little bit. Why? You're not going backing out on me are you?"

She smiled and said, "Of course not. I guess I'm just nervous, seeing as this is our first real hunt."

He put his paw on her back and said, "I'm feeling a bit nervous about this too. But like you said, it's most likely because it's the first time. Hopefully it will be different next time."

"Yea, next time..."

The caribou's head turned away for some more grass. Stella smiled and asked, "This is getting easier by the second."

Before Trey could say anything to his sister, she jumped out of the grass and ran towards the ill caribou with as much speed as she could. The caribou heard the footsteps and looked to Stella coming toward it. The caribou froze in fear for a short moment, which helped Stella get even closer, before turning around and running. Trey followed behind his sister, to give any support if needed.

Jake's and Violet's ears twitched at the sound of their cousins starting the chase already. With their good hearing, only they heard it. The caribou next to them hadn't heard the noise yet. But they would any minute, seeing as Stella and Trey were chasing the caribou their way. Jake looked to his sister and said, "You ready for this?"

She nodded her head before Jake leaped from the grass and ran to his prey. Not being too far away, the caribou had barely enough time to react before Jake's teeth were latched on to its neck. The, now injured, caribou thrashed around to shake Jake off of it. Jake's teeth were holding on too tight for that to happen. He let the claws slide out from his paws and scratched at the caribou's back, weakening it even more. The caribou slowly lost its energy, and went limp as it slowly fell to the ground. Jake unlatched his teeth and licked his teeth, tasting the blood. Violet approached him with a smile and gave him a high paw saying, "Nice work, bro."

"Thanks."

Their attention quickly turned from each other to their cousins as they came in to sight. Stella was still chasing the caribou, a few inches behind it. Stella's claws slid from her paws as she leaped at the caribou, landing on its back and forcing her claws in to the sides of the ill prey. Stella quickly latched her teeth in to the neck, biting down hard and twisting a little to inflict more damage. The caribou let out a whine of pain, making Stella cringe at the painful sound. She closed her eyes, trying to focus on taking it down more than the screams of pain.

Once the caribou finally lost its energy, Stella unlatched her teeth as the prey slid to the ground, dead. Trey, standing beside her now, smiled as he said, "Not bad, sis."

Stella looked down at her large kill and said, "Thanks."

Jake and Violet walked over to them, Jake dragging the carcass of his kill. Jake's laughing was muffled by the carcass in his mouth. He turned his head to his cousins and dropped the carcass to speak. He looked at the kill and said, "Nice kill."

Stella smiled as if to say thanks.

Garth and Kate were smiling to each other at the top of the cliff. They had just witnessed the new Alphas make their first kills. Garth looked to Kate and said, "I can already tell that that are going to be _the _best Alpha hunters of the pack."


	4. Chapter Three

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything. All credit goes to Crest Animation Productions and Lions Gate Family Entertainment. All I own are the original characters.**

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**_The New Generation: Alex Trey Stella_**

**_Chapter Three_**

It's been about an hour since the Alphas left for their first hunt. The Omegas, Alex and Luna, however, stayed at home with Humphrey and Lilly. The two were still tired from the long day of running and had fallen asleep, leaving Humphrey and Lilly the only two awake. They are at the edge of a rock, outside Kate and Humphrey's den. Humphrey was lying down, head on his paws, looking to see if he could spot Kate or the others. Lilly was looking up at the sky, which was a little darker now. A few stars could be spotted already in the darker parts of the sky, whereas the glowing orange horizon showed no stars whatsoever. Lilly smiled as she looked up at the stars, picking out constellations that were already showing. Humphrey's ear twitched when he heard her sigh. He lifted his head, looking to his right at Lilly to see her smiling. He asked, "You like seeing the stars, don't you?"

Lilly nodded her head and said, "Specially from this den. So many memories here..."

Humphrey paused for a second and asked, "Why don't you come back and live here again?"

Lilly looked at him for a short moment to process the question. Looking back up at the sky, she answered, "We can't. There needs to be Head Alphas living in the Eastern section of the pack. As long as Garth's siblings don't live here, it looks like he and I are the only choices

"Oh..." Humphrey said, "Right. Forgot about the Head Alpha stuff. Hard to remember those things after getting used to it, you know?"

Lilly nodded, a small tear escaping her eye as she looked to the ground. Humphrey took notice of this and asked, "You alright, Lilly?"

"Huh?" Lilly looked to him, and quickly wiped away her tear saying, "Oh—sorry..."

"Don't be. What's wrong, Lilly?" Humphrey asked. He was starting to get concerned for his sister-in-law. Lilly answered back, "Nothing. I just... started thinking about my parents..."

Winston and Eve. Humphrey didn't know them as well as Kate and Lilly had, so he wasn't as upset about their deaths as much as they were. That doesn't mean he doesn't get sad about it. He just isn't affected as much, having not known them since birth like the two girls did. Humphrey looked to the ground, beginning to think about his parents. A few years back, Kate, Lilly, Garth, and him had met his parents during their adventures. They had ended up in Helena National Forest, Montana and found Rose and Jack, Humphrey's parents. Humphrey had never been happier in his life, having found his parents. Being able to see them after all those years made him let out tears of joy. Not only that, but Humphrey found out that he also had siblings, Seth and Dawn. He felt blessed that he got to see his family. That changed when he and Lilly thought the two Alphas had died from falling over a cliff. He had to take Lilly home to tell Eve and Winston about the news. So, he didn't get to be with his family as long as he would have liked. Humphrey felt that it was okay though, because now he had three wonderful pups with the one he's always loved. Kate.

Humphrey found something to say to Lilly. He laid his head down on his paws as he said, "At least you knew your parents..."

Lilly turned her head to look at him, trying to find something to say about that. Nothing came to her, so she laid her head down to wait on the others. Humphrey didn't get to grow up with his parents. He lived most of his life without them around. Lilly remembered how happy Humphrey was when they found Rose and Jack in Montana along with his brother, Seth, and adopted sister, Dawn. An idea crept in to Lilly's mind.

Lilly asked, "Humphrey. Do you want to see your parents again?"

He lifted his head up quickly to look at her and said, "Of course I do. Why do you ask?"

Her answer was simple, "Maybe we could get you to Montana and visit your parents for a couple days."

Humphrey got to his feet, with a smile on his face and tail wagging side to side, "Seriously? If there's a chance for me to see my parents, I want to take it, so please don't be joking with me."

Lilly chuckled and said, "No, i'm not joking, Humphrey. You, me, Kate, and Garth could all visit your parents for a few days and get back fast. There's only one problem i'm worried about..."

Lilly looked back at the den behind her, and Humphrey said, "Right... The kids... "

Who was going to take care of Alex, Trey, Stella, Luna, Jake, and Violet? Surely the four Head Alphas couldn't leave the six alone, could they? Would they be safe enough to stay home alone? And what would happen to the Central pack of Jasper without the head Alphas? Would they be able to handle a short time without leaders? Surely they would, since they got new hunters and messengers.

"Hey you two. What's going on?"

Humphrey and Lilly turned to see Kate, Garth approaching them. Stella and Jake were helping Trey and Violet drag the caribou carcasses behind them. Humphrey and Lilly noticed how big the caribou were and knew it was definitely enough for both families. Humphrey smiled and said, "Hey guys. Looks like you had a great hunt for your first try."

Trey dropped the carcass as he and Stella ran up to their father. At the same time they both said, "Got our first caribou!"

Humphrey chuckled at their excitement as he took notice of Violet and Jake telling Lilly about their kill with the same level of excitement that their cousins had. Humphrey, trying to help Lilly not get buried with a story about a kill, suggested, "Let's bring them in and get to dinner, shall we?"

Trey, Stella, Violet, and Jake all nodded as they grabbed the pair of dead caribou and carried them into the den.

Humphrey was feeling in a good mood about now. Not only because of his two Alpha pups having a successful first hunt, but also because there was a chance that he would see his parents again. Not only his parents, but his brother and sister as well.

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**Well, that was Chapter Three. Hope you enjoyed! Sorry if it's taking long to update. Been distracted with my new games I got on Christmas. I also got the Alpha and Omega DVD. (You can't even imagine how much I wanted to scream out of pure happiness.)**

**I'd like to thank you for reading the story, and being patient on the new chapter. Hope you are enjoying the story so far and I hope you stick with it. I can guarantee you that this story gets more interesting.**

**Before I let you go, I'd just like to remind you about my Facebook Page. If you have no account on here and can't subscribe to the story, or if you just want to, you can join my page and get updates on the stories. I'll be posting updates on the following: New Chapters, New Stories, New Preview and so on... The easiest way I know of to find the page is to go on Facebook and search for my username "CGWolf '13"**

**Read and Review!  
****Please and thank you!**


	5. Chapter Four

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything. All credit goes to Crest Animation Productions and Lions Gate Family Entertainment. All I own are the original characters.**

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**_The New Generation: Alex Trey Stella_**

**_Chapter Four_**

After everybody ate their fill of caribou, they all cleaned the blood off of them. Humphrey and Garth cleaned up and were ready to go. Alex, Jake, and Trey were ready as well, and were just talking and telling jokes to one another. Being a lot like his father, Alex was telling the most jokes. Stella, Luna, and Violet were still helping each other get ready by using pine-cones to go through each others' tails. Lilly had a red and white flower sitting behind her right ear. Not only as a pretty decoration, but also to keep her fur from falling over her left eye. Stella, after finishing combing Luna's tail with the pine cone said, "Looks like you're ready, Luna."

Luna turned around and smiled, keeping silent. Violet, finishing up with Stella's tail told Luna, "Looking good sis."

Luna quietly said, "Thanks."

Violet looked concerned and asked, "Is there something wrong, Luna? You don't look excited about this."

Luna responded, "Oh I'm fine. It's just... i'm kind of nervous about tonight."

Violet, Stella, and Luna all exchanged glances and started chuckling amongst themselves, knowing they all felt the same about tonight's events.

After getting ready, Kate had gone outside and was sitting out on the ledge for a while. She looked up at the starry night sky, lit up by the glowing light of the full moon. Hearing footsteps down below, Kate looked down to see groups of wolves all walking in the same direction. She saw some couples and groups of friends and could name each wolf that she saw. Adrianne, Drake, Louis, Josie, Kim... Kate already knew where they were all going. She just hadn't expected that it would start this early in the night. Kate walked away from the ledge, going back inside to join the others. She saw the three girls. Luna's head fur was covering her right eye. Her white fur shining in the moonlight that crept into the den. Violet's red and white fur was all cleaned and done just the way she liked it to be. Stella was the last that Kate looked at. Stella's fur contained not even a speck of dirt. Her tail wrapped around her legs, to keep her paws warm. Kate looked them all over and told them, "You three look so beautiful... Don't you agree, Lilly?"

"Of course they do. They can never look bad," Lilly answered.

Humphrey's ears twitched hearing footsteps outside. He went to Kate's side, taking notice of the purple flower behind her ear before whispering, "Is it starting already?"

She whispered back, "Everybody is heading there already," her voice rose to tell everyone, "If we're going to go, we should leave now. Is everyone ready?"

"Ready!" All six of the young wolves answered at the exact same time.

A few moments later, Humphrey, Kate, Lilly, and Garth could all hear the howls of couples and friends as they approached the small mountain known as Howling Rock with Alex, Trey, Stella, Luna, Jake, and Violet following behind them. This was the first time the six pups had been to the Moonlight Howl. Alex was already looking around at the other Omegas. He seemed to look mostly at the girls, waving at a few that passed him with a smile. Jake was already with a group of friends, waving at a red furred girl that passed by giving him a smile. Trey went over to a friend and struck a conversation with them. Violet, Stella, and Luna stayed together, looking around at everything going on. Not too many wolves were howling by now. Violet's eyes met the blue eyes of a red furred male wolf, making her heart skip a beat and force her to make a small smile. She subtly waved at him before he waved back.

Violet turned around, hearing her sister and cousin giggling. She asked, "What's so funny?"

Stella said, "Oh, nothing... I see you've already found your... _friend_."

Violet blushed underneath her fur as she took a step back, out of surprise, and said, "Wha—No. H—He's not a friend of mine."

Luna responded, "You should work on that. Go talk to him."

"No."

Stella insisted, "Go. You might regret it if you don't."

Violet took another glance up at the wolf to find that he wasn't there anymore. She turned back to the others and said, "He's gone. I can't now. I'll talk to him next time I see him, okay?"

Stella and Luna exchanged glances with each other, knowing they would hold her to that. Violet rolled her eyes and said, "Let's just howl, alright?"

The two just smiled as the three started walking up the slope, finding a ledge big enough for the three of them with a couple of their friends.

Lilly and Garth chose a ledge about halfway up and began howling. She was enjoying the sound of Garth's howl. She had enjoyed hearing him ever since she helped him a few years back. Garth was very thankful for her lesson on a good howl. His mistake was he was actually trying to make a howl, instead of letting it flow out from his heart. Lilly not only enjoyed Garth's howl. He enjoyed hers as well. To Garth, she sounded like an angel sent from Heaven.

Kate and Humphrey were still walking up the slope. They were heading for the very top of the Howling Rock. The same spot where they shared their first love duet. And the same spot where Humphrey asked her to marry him. Humphrey smiled, remembering back to that day. How happy Kate looked when he asked her.

Kate asked, "You alright, Humphrey?"

"Huh?"

She asked again, "You okay? You seem way happier than you have the other times we've done this."

"Oh yea. I was just remembering your face when I asked you to marry me."

Kate's smile grew even bigger as she said, "The second best day of my life..."

"_'Second'_? What was the first?"

"The day we actually got married of course."

Humphrey smiled and nuzzled Kate's neck as he told her, "I love you."

"I love you too, Humphrey."

The two approached the top of the Howling Rock and stood face-to-face. Both hearts beating quickly. Kate asked, "You ready?"

"Ready when you are."

With that, they both smiled and took a deep breath. Turning their heads back up to the sky, eyes closed, they began to howl a love duet, coming from both of their hearts.

Violet and Luna stopped once they heard their parents begin to howl. Stella did the same once her parents did the same. They all looked to their corresponding parents to listen to the howls of the love duets. Jake, Trey, and Alex hadn't been howling, but they stopped talking to their friends for a minute while their parents continued.

A few moments passed before their parents stopped.

"Humphrey! I finally found you, Humphrey!"

All of the wolves around Howling Rock went silent as they heard the voice of someone unknown. They would've been angry about someone trespassing onto their territory. Only, they sounded sad. So, there was no point in being angry. NOt only that, but he seemed to know Humphrey. Humphrey was the first to recognize him because of the voice. Kate, Lilly, and Garth didn't realize who it was even when they looked down to see the grey furred wolf with blue eyes running toward Humphrey. They were all wondering who he was. Their question was answered when Humphrey said, "Seth? What are you doing here?"

Seth, panting from the running he had just done, tried to speak, but needed to rest a moment to get his breath back. Humphrey patiently waited a few moments. Kate asked Humphrey, "Your brother from Montana, right?"

Humphrey nodded, "I recognized him the second I heard his voice. This is definitely Seth."

Garth and Lilly ran up to them to see what was going on. They had heard Seth's name and recognized it from their adventure to Montana. Alex, Trey, Stella, Luna, Jake, and Violet all ran up as well, considering their parents were there already. Alex asked, "What's going on?"

Seth, in between pants, said to his brother, "It's... mom."

Humphrey said, "What about mom?"

"Dad sent me here to — to tell you... She... She doesn't have much longer..."

Humphrey, Kate, Garth, and Lilly all yelled, "What!" out of surprise. Kate looked to Humphrey, wondering what his thoughts were on what Seth just told them. Humphrey was definitely sad, but he wasn't showing any tears. At least, not that Kate could see. Humphrey looked to her and said, "We have to go. _Now_."

"I want to go as much as you do, Humphrey... But, what about the pack? What about the kids? We can't just—"

Lilly interrupted, "You two go. Garth and I will look after everyone."

Kate looked back at her sister and asked, "Are you sure, Lilly?"

Garth nodded and said, "You can count on us. I promise, nothing will go wrong with us here."

Seth said, "If we're going to go, we better leave right now. I heard the train coming when I arrived, we can hop on and take it back to Helena."

Kate and Humphrey nodded as Seth turned around and took off. Humphrey began sprinting after his brother. As Kate ran off, she yelled back, "I'm going to be holding you to that promise, Garth!"

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**Hope you enjoyed this chapter. Leave Reviews, Please! **


	6. Chapter Five

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything. All credit goes to Crest Animation Productions and Lions Gate Family Entertainment. All I own are the original characters.**

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**_The New Generation: Alex Trey Stella_**

**_Chapter Five_**

As Humphrey, Seth, and Kate got closer to the train tracks, they started hearing the howling begin to resume at Howling Rock. Although Kate had wanted to be there with her three offspring at their first Moonlight Howl, she wanted to be with Humphrey. His mother didn't have long, and they had to get to Helena National Forest as quick as they could before her death. The train would surely get them there faster than they could run the distance. So, they had to make sure they got on. Seth ran in the front, determined to reach the train with time to spare. Humphrey, not far behind his brother, had no need to slow down for Kate. Her speed was still great, almost as if she was still a young pup, filled to the brim with energy. Humphrey looked to his left at his mate, giving her a smile. He was glad that Kate was coming with him. After all, Kate was his mother's daughter-in-law. It was only fair that she be at his mother's side as well.

"There it is!"

Humphrey took his eyes from Kate to look ahead in front of him at his brother. Seth changed direction, turning to the right. Humphrey and Kate turned with him. Kate looked back to see that the Canadian Express was turning a corner, coming toward them now. She looked back ahead as the three began slowing down. From the sound of the train's engine alone, they could tell it was already catching up to them quicker. Seth looked back at the two behind him and yelled over the loud roar of the train's engine, "You get on first, Kate! Then you can help us get on!"

Kate nodded with a smile as the train approached their sides. They sped up to keep at the same speed as the train. Kate took a few last steps before leaping off the dirt ground, leaving a small cloud of dirt where she jumped. She stretched her forelegs forward, her back legs hanging over the edge of the train car. This worried Humphrey, making him call, "You alright, Kate?"

Kate pulled herself up into the car, turned around and said, "I'm fine! Who's jumping next?"

Humphrey and Seth glanced at each other, trying to decide who was going next. Humphrey said, "You next, Seth."

Seth looked to Kate and took a few steps before leaving the ground, making contact with the metal floor of the car. Turning around, he backed up to allow space for his brother to get up. Humphrey looked to Kate and Seth, getting ready to make his jump. Kate yelled, "Hurry!"

"Don't rush me!"

"No, you _have _to hurry! The cliff is coming!"

_Cliff? _Humphrey looked in the direction he was running to see that the train tracks were heading for a cliff to a bridge. Humphrey had to jump now, or run to Helena National Forest. Humphrey kept running straight ahead, surprised by the cliff that he never knew about. He was about to run over, without even knowing until it was too late. Seth yelled, "Humphrey! _Jump! Now!_"

Humphrey blinked, saw the cliff approaching him and made a jump at the train just as his back paws hit the edge of the cliff. His front paws clung to the floor of the train car, scratching at the hard metal as he tried to pull himself up. Kate sunk her teeth into the back of Humphrey's neck, where she knew he could feel no pain. She pulled him upwards, desperate to get him up. Seth, curious as to what was down below, looked over the edge of the train car and down below the tracks. From the height the bridge was at, it just looked like blackness, but the reflection of the moon and stars was a dead giveaway that it was a large river. He heard Humphrey's voice yell, "Pull, Kate! Pull!"

Seth looked back at his brother and Kate. She had her teeth on the scruff of Humphrey's neck, trying to pull him up. Kate groaned as she dropped Humphrey's skin from her teeth, unable to pull him up. She yelled to Seth, "No use... I can't get you up, Humphrey. You want to try, Seth?"

Seth told her, "If you can't do it, then I know I won't be able to. I can tell you have more strength than me."

Kate sighed and told Humphrey, "Looks like you're just going to have to hang on."

Seth silently chuckled to himself at that comment. Humphrey yelled, "Not funny!"

"Alright, Kate... Let's use some teamwork here. Maybe that will work."

Kate nodded as Seth put his teeth on the back of his brother's neck. She followed his move and, with Humphrey now in her teeth, she managed to say, "Now!"

The two pulled Humphrey at the same time with all the strength they could. Humphrey used what energy he had left in his forelegs to pull his body upwards. Slipping out of Seth's teeth, Humphrey dropped down a little. Seth was quick to react and latched his teeth back in to his brother's neck. With one last, strong pull, Humphrey was pulled up onto the metal floor of the train car. Finally able to relax, Humphrey began breathing heavily as he stretched his forelegs. He felt as if he had just ran about twenty miles. He might as well have if his legs felt this tired.

Kate noticed her mate's breathing and felt tired herself. She knew Seth was exhausted as well, already lying down. She turned to Humphrey and said, "We might as well get some rest. Never know when you'll get another chance."

"Right."

Kate looked around the train car and found some bales of hay. A memory came back to her. The day when she and Humphrey had first gotten on this train. After escaping a large grizzly bear, the two of them had crashed onto this train, landing softly on the bales of hay that were stored in the car.

Humphrey, smiled as he asked, "Now, why does this look so familiar?"

Kate chuckled and answered, "This is where we first howled together, Humphrey. I think this is even the same part of the train."

Humphrey's smile grew bigger as he remembered that night with the full moon. The beautiful duet that he and Kate had created together. That was one of the best moments of his life. After reliving that memory, he watched as Kate laid down in the corner, next to a pile of hay. Curling up in a ball, she wrapped her tail around her body and let it rest upon her nose. Humphrey smiled at the sight of her like that as he laid down at her side. Seth laid down at the edge of the train car's edge, looking up at the moon before closing his eyes for some sleep.


	7. Chapter Six

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything. All credit goes to Crest Animation Productions and Lions Gate Family Entertainment. All I own are the original characters.**

**Finally updated! Sorry for the long wait.**

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**_The New Generation: Alex Trey Stella_**

**_Chapter Six_**

"Any questions?" Garth asked.

He and Lilly had taken the pups home after the Moonlight Howl, deciding that it was time to tell them the story of their adventure to Helena and back. Alex, Jake, Luna, Stella, Trey, and Violet were silent. A short moment passed before Alex asked, "So... Seth is our uncle?"

Lilly nodded her head as a yes.

Stella said, "Of course he is, Al. Weren't you listening? He is dad's brother. That makes him our uncle."

"Okay, first of all... Don't call me Al, my name is Alex. And second, I was just making sure. I don't want to—"

"Shhh..."

Alex, Stella, Garth, and Lilly looked to the entrance of the den at Trey whose ears were perked straight up. Alex said, "Y'know, it's rude to inter—"

"SHHH... I think I hear something."

Stella stood up from where she was lying and slowly made her way to Trey's side, lifting her ears up to listen as well. Out of curiosity, Alex went to Trey's other side as well and raised his ears, wondering what had their attention.

Jake asked, "What is it?"

Violet and Luna exchanged curious glances and a shrug before looking back to their three cousins.

Trey asked Stella, "Do you hear it now?"

She nodded and responded, "Yea, it sounds like a voice... I can't make out what it's saying though. Can you?"

Trey gave a horizontal nod as a sign that said 'no.' He looked to his brother, whose ear was twitching and face looked worried. Alex looked to his older brother and said, "I'm hearing a call for help..."

Stella and Trey exchanged worried glances and turned around to face Garth, Lilly, Luna, Jake, and Violet. Stella said, "We have to help them."

Garth stepped forward and said, "Just be careful..."

Trey gave a nod and a smile before turning to Alex and saying, "Lead the way, brother."

* * *

A moment later Alex, Trey and Stella were running through the trees of Jasper Park. Alex, leading the trio because of his great sense of hearing and tracking. Stella was close behind, and Trey was struggling to keep up, but was able to avoid getting left behind too far. He expected his speed to be better than this, but his first hunt must have taken a lot of energy out of him. After jumping on top of a rock, Alex stopped instantly. Stella and Trey slowed to a stop next to him and looked around. In between breaths, Stella asked, "Wh... Why'd you... stop? We can't be there already..."

Alex looked around, his ears searching every direction. The worried look on his face said it all. He couldn't hear anything. He told his siblings this and Trey replied, "Please tell me you're joking..."

Trey looked at his sister, whose ears were searching for any noise. She sighed and said, "Whoever needed help is probably gone..."

Trey looked to the ground with a heavy sigh and asked, "How could we let this happen?"

Alex looked down to his brother. "We didn't _let_ this happen, Trey... Nothing could have— Wait... Did you hear that?"

Stella's and Treys ears perked up again, both of them eager to hear something. Anything. Stella heard it first. Crunching leaves, snapping twigs. Getting louder...

They all realized what it was, but Trey made it clear by stating what it was, "Someone's running."

The three took off in the direction of the noise. As they ran, they would keep hearing a voice call out, "Help!" With each swift step, they could hear the voice getting closer. They wondered who it was, and what was wrong. Alex's thoughts kept bringing him to one conclusion. Someone had to have been getting chased. Not being able to distinguish the direction of the noise anymore, the three stopped to listen. A short moment of listening told them that whoever was running, was still getting closer. Trey broke into a sprint first, followed by Stella and Alex shortly after.

Trey's breathing was getting quicker as he began losing energy. But he was determined to provide help for anyone that needed it. He couldn't even imagine what must be happening to whoever was calling for help. He heard the voice call again, "Help me, please!" Trey was able to make it out as a female voice. Without any warning whatsoever, Trey was instantly knocked backward, falling to his back as Alex and Stella slowed to a stop somewhere in front of him. Trey was on his back, with a wolf with red and white fur on top of him, crying in fear. He chuckled and said, "You could've warned me that you would do that."

The girl quickly got up and backed away, tail between her legs and worry upon her face. "No... No, you won't take me back there! I won't let you!"

Trey grabbed the girl's foreleg just as she turned to begin running. He assured her, "We're trying to help you. What's going on? What's happening?"

The girl heard footsteps behind her, making her almost scream in fear. Alex and Stella came to them and Stella asked, "What's your name?"

Frozen in fear, the female said nothing, keeping her tail between her legs as a signal of submission. Tears were already escaping her eyes. She slowly began to back away as Stella and Alex joined Trey at his sides. The girl looked back and forth between the three wolves in front of her. A male's voice boomed behind her. "There you are!"

The female looked behind her at the voice to see another red and white wolf approaching her. An older male. With an angry look on his face. Trey followed the girl's movements as she went behind his back. Taking this into account, he realized this girl must be running from whoever this guy was. He, Stella, and Alex all growled at the male. His voice was deep and raspy as he said, "This concerns none of you pups."

Trey growled, "Well, it obviously does, since we're here. What do you want?"

The male answered, "I want the girl. Give her to me, and I _might _let you live."

Trey stole a glance behind him at the terrified girl. Her blue eyes stared into Trey's golden brown ones. He turned back to the red-and-white male and asked, "Why should we?"

The wolf growled, "I _said_... this does not concern you! Now, give me the girl! _Now!"_

"No."

Alex stepped forward, growling and said, "Beat it, before we tear you apart."

The wolf chuckled, "You think I'm afraid of you?"

"If you won't be afraid of them, be afraid of me..."

Trey, Stella, and Alex turned to the familiar voice to see their uncle walking towards the male.

"And, who would you be?" The stranger asked.

Garth stood proud as he stated, "My name is Garth. I'm one of four head Alphas here in Jasper."

The stranger chuckled, "Well, well, well... United the packs of the East and West, have we?"

"Yes, I have... Now leave or I'll tear you to shreds."

The wolf smiled and responded. "Now now... You wouldn't kill your own flesh and blood, would you?"

"Wha— What do you—" Garth managed to get out before being knocked to the ground, the stranger holding him down and growling in his face.

"You're still so weak, brother..."

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**Wow... Exciting chapter, don't you think? Who is this girl? Why is she running from this male? And is this guy really Garth's brother? Find out in the next chapter!**

**Reviews are welcome! **


	8. Chapter Seven

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything. All credit goes to Crest Animation Productions and Lions Gate Family Entertainment. All I own are the original characters.**

* * *

**_The New Generation: Alex Trey Stella_**

**_Chapter Seven_**

Garth stood proud, with a smile, as he stated, "My name is Garth. I'm one of four head Alphas here in Jasper."

The stranger chuckled, "Well, well, well... United the packs of the East and West, have we?"

"Yes, I have... Now leave or I'll tear you to shreds for trespassing into our territory."

The wolf smiled and responded. "Now now... You wouldn't kill your own flesh and blood, would you?"

"Wha— What do you—" Garth managed to get out before being knocked to the ground, the stranger holding him down and growling in his face.

"You're still so weak, brother..."

The last word sent anger through Garth's body. Fueled by his own hate for this wolf, Garth was able to gather his strength and pushed the stranger off of him, allowing himself to get back to his paws. The male fell to his back with a thud and grunt. A second later, Garth was standing over the red furred male, holding him down. Even though he didn't believe what this guy was telling him, the scent still seemed a little familiar. But Garth was not going to believe this guy unless he had solid proof.

"You are not my brother. I saw it with my own eyes. Even though you might look like him a little, I still know you are not him."

"And how would you know if I was or not?"

"Because my brother was killed when I was a pup," Garth explained, "I saw it with my own eyes."

"Garth, you have to believe me. Look into my eyes... It's me... Korosu."

That caught Garth by surprise. He stopped growling and his face went from anger to confusion. Garth backed up, keeping his eyes locked on Korosu's as he got back to his paws, standing up. Alex, Stella, and Trey stood still, watching in awe as their uncle was letting this wolf stand freely. The girl hiding behind Trey tried to hide herself better by backing up a little into the darkness of the shadows behind her. Thinking she heard a silent growl behind her, she turned to see what the source of the noise was. Finding nothing but darkness, she turned back to the scene occurring in front of her.

Garth stammered, "H—How? How do you... know my brother's name?"

Korosu replied, "I know I look different, with my scars and all, but believe me when I say this; I am your brother." He looked at the girl, hearing her footsteps as she backed away, then looked back to Garth and continued speaking, "I don't want any trouble. I'm just here for the girl's death, and i'll be gone immediately."

Garth let out a quick growl before jumping at his brother, pinning him back down to the ground. Both of his paws on his brother's neck. Korosu asked, "What are you doing?"

Garth growled, "I don't want to kill you. But I would rather kill my own brother than let him murder an innocent little girl."

Putting pressure on his brother's throat, Garth let a small tear escape his eye as he thought about how his brother was about to die under his own paw.

Korosu choked, "F—fine... Kill me. After what... _she _did to my daughter, I would prefer to die. So just get it over with."

Time seemed to slow down as Garth lifted his head to look at the red and white girl. As his head raised, Korosu smiled. Before Garth could ask anything of the girl, he felt a short stinging sensation on the side of his face, making him let out a growl, and then he felt the ground against his back. The next thing that Garth noticed was that he was pinned under his brother. Again. Unable to move anything but his head. He looked above him at Korosu. Garth's right cheek was stinging. Trey, Stella, and Alex could see one large vertical scratch on Garth's right cheek.

"You always were easy to take down, brother."

With that, Korosu made one final swipe with his paw at Garth's face, leaving three horizontal scratches on the left cheek of his brother. Small drops of blood dripped from the scratches, rolling down from his face and landing on the grass, turning it from green to a mixture of green and red in the darkness of the night. Stella let a tear escape her eye as she looked at Uncle Garth, lying motionless. Their uncle lie still. Unmoving. Korosu stepped down from his brother and turned to the three standing in front of the girl. They backed up; Stella letting tears fill her eyes, Alex getting terrified, and Trey getting angry.

Trey, with tears starting fill his eyes, shouted at his Korosu with the voice of both anger, and sadness. "Why would you do such a thing? How could you kill your own brother? He's gone because of you! You murderer!"

"If you had just given her to me," Korosu said, "then your precious uncle would still be alive. Give her to me now. Or shall I take you three as well?"

Trey, Alex, and Stella stepped forward with pride. For the first time in Alex's life, he felt like an Alpha ranked wolf as he felt that he was going to be in his first fight. He stated, "It's three against one. You can't win, Korosu."

"Who said I came alone?" Korosu asked, with a sly smile.

As if on cue, a small pack of around five to six wolves came out from their hiding places behind the surrounding trees. They had been hidden in the dark shadows cast by the light of the full moon. The girl that had hidden behind Trey looked behind her, hearing the footsteps of a wolf, and found a wolf covered in black fur walking toward her. Trey, Alex, and Stella looked around them, seeing wolves of black fur that had been hiding them well in the darkness of the night. Alex, Trey, Stella, and the girl were surrounded. And severely outnumbered.

Korosu commanded, "Get them. As for Garth's body, leave him here. A dead wolf's body is of no use to us..."

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**That was Chapter Seven. Hope you enjoyed it.**

**Read & Review, please!**


	9. Chapter Eight

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything. All credit goes to Crest Animation Productions and Lions Gate Family Entertainment. All I own are the original characters.**

* * *

**_The New Generation: Alex Trey Stella_**

**_Chapter Eight_**

Stella was the first to wake up. Her eyes catching the sight of an orange glow coming from outside of the den she was lying in. She got up, stretched, and felt a small sting in her side. Looking down at what the cause of it was, Stella found three short scratches with dried blood that looked to have trickled from each cut. Feeling a pain in her head, Stella put her paw to her forehead, feeling a bump. There was most likely a bruise there. She groaned at the pain, and thought to herself, _"What happened..." _Looking around, she found that her two brothers were asleep. An even better look around the den told her that they were alone. But what had happened? The last thing she remembers was fighting Korosu and his pack of wolves to protect that red and white colored girl. The next, she wakes up here with Alex and Trey asleep. The red girl gone. And no sight of Korosu or the other wolves.

The orange glow caught Stella's eyes again. She walked outside, hearing the echo of her paw-steps following her. Sitting down on the ledge outside, the young Alpha sat down, and looked below. A long fall. Good thing she wasn't clumsy, or she would have fallen over for sure. Looking back in front of her, she saw the source of the orange radiance. The sun was rising. The heat of the light gave her warmth. This felt good, combined with the cool feel of the light breeze. Not too hot, not too cold. Just perfect. Stella never wanted this moment to end. But she had to make sure she and her two brothers were safe. Looking around, she saw no sign of the red and white girl, the pack members, or Korosu. Sight was not the only thing that mattered. They could be hiding. Stella sniffed the air to try and find a scent. She did catch a scent. Hers, Alex's, and Trey's. Along with the scent of the girl from last night, accompanied by the scent of a male wolf.

Stella, knowing that the girl was not a killer, figured that she and her brothers were safe. But what about the male scent? Whose was it? And what had happened to them? What happened to Korosu? And the other wolves that were with him? Where did they all go? How did she, Alex, and Trey survive the brutal fighting? Stella decided not think about these questions. Not at the moment. As long as her family was safe, that's what matters. And with how tired she still was, there was no way she would be able to figure anything out. Deciding to get some more sleep, Stella turned around and went back inside the den. Noticing that Alex was shaking from the cold air of the cave, she took a spot beside him to give him some of her body heat.

Lying her head down, her eyes closed automatically, with a smile on her face as she knew they were safe. Or so it seemed. That's what Stella thought until she heard a silent growl behind her. Her Alpha instincts took over and made her quickly stand up, taking a defense position and facing the source of the growl. Baring her teeth, Stella let out a low growl and raised her tail to show she wasn't afraid. That is, until she saw what she was up against. Once she saw the large, black, grizzly bear. The sight of him made Stella's tail go between her legs, her growling go silent, and a look of worry come across her face.

Stella quickly thought back to Alpha school. What to do when facing a large bear? Stella missed that day! She had gone ill and had to miss that day. Trey was supposed to teach her what she missed and had completely forgotten about it. There was only one thing that Stella could think of doing at this moment. She backed up, slowly, and whispered with a raspy and terrified voice. "G—Guys?"

No answer.

"Guys, wake up..."

She got an answer this time. Trey groaned, "What is it, Stella? Can't you see we're still sleeping?"

"Yea, well you might be dead if you don't help me out here."

The bear growled again. Trey heard it that time. His eyes opened and his head lifted to see the bear. Trey jumped into the air with perfect timing to avoid a side swipe of the bear. Pain in Trey's legs and side made him feel weaker than he usually would in the morning. He felt that there were scratches in his side, most likely from the fight the night before. But he had to protect his siblings. He ran over to Stella and told her, "Wake up Alex and get out of here, okay?"

"Okay, but what about y—"

"Don't worry about me, Stella. I just want you two to get out of here safely. Now go—"

His sentence was cut short by a hit in the side by the bear's large arm, knocking Trey into the stone wall of the den. The sound of his body hitting the floor with a thud echoed throughout the den. Trey tried getting back to his feet. But the bear's attack took out the remaining energy that Trey had left. With no energy left in his body to keep himself up, he fell unconscious. With his scratches being ripped back open by the force of the bear's impact, blood started dripping to the floor. Stella ran over to Alex and started shaking him as she yelled, "Alex, wake up! Now! Hurry!"

Stella looked back at Trey, seeing that he was now unconscious. Continuing to shake her brother, she kept yelling, "Get up, Alex! Please, wake up! We need to get out of here!"

"Hey, hey, calm down Stella. What's going on?" Stella was unaware when Alex was awake and stopped shaking him in the middle of his sentence. She replied with almost a yell, "We have to go, _now_!"

"Yea, yea. I got that part, but—"

Interrupted by a roar of the large bear. Alex's head turned to see the dark grizzly coming towards them. He quickly got to his paws and ducked low, avoiding the bear's attempt to make contact. Alex, seizing this opportunity, leaped at the bear. He aimed for the neck, hoping to take it down with ease. Even though Alex might have been quick to make the jump, the bear was quicker. The grizzly raised its right arm, knocking Alex into the air and sending him out of the den. Stella heard the thud of her brother's body hitting the ground outside, then heard Alex call for help, along with sounds of scratching on stone.

Stella quickly ran outside to help her brother. What she saw made her scared for her youngest brother's life. He was hanging on the edge of the cliff that she had been sitting at just moments ago. Alex was scratching at the stone, trying to get a good grip to pull himself back up. Unable to find a good gripping spot, he continued to slipping further down from the ledge. Stella jumped at the ledge and grabbed her brother's paw just as it slipped from the edge. Stella forgot about the bear, until it roared again. She looked behind her at the bear walking toward her and Alex, leaving Trey alone in the den.

Stella was definitely not enjoying this moment. Her brother, Trey, was unconscious and bleeding. Her other brother, hanging over the side of a cliff. And she was trapped between a bear and a long fall down. Death seemed inevitable at this point. Unavoidable. Certain death. Stella knew there was no way she was possibly going to survive at this moment. Not only her, but her two brothers, Alex and Trey, were going to die as well. Stella tightened her grip on Alex's paw as she waited for the bear's attack. Whether it be by the impact of its arms, or the piercing of skin by its sharp teeth.

As Stella closed her eyes, a lone tear escaped her eye and was taken over by Earth's gravity. The tear fell over the side of the cliff, and fell past Alex, continuing on down to eventually hit ground.

Stella heard one last growl from the bear, and sensed its presence directly behind her. She braced herself for the attack. It never came. The bear roared in what sounded like pain. Taking notice of this, Stella listened closer and could hear growling from more than one creature. Stella opened her eyes and looked behind her to see what else was there. What she saw made her happy. Two wolves were fighting off the black colored grizzly. One had its teeth latched into the bear's neck, the other was biting the legs.

Stella decided to take this chance and began to pull with what strength she had left. Alex used his own strength to push down on the ground with his front paws, hoisting himself up to the ledge. He put his back paws on the side of the cliff, and used them for more strength in pushing himself up. After what seemed like an eternity, but was really only about a minute, Alex was back on the ledge. Sitting beside his sister, his head hung low as he breathed heavily, exhausted from the loss of energy. He and Stella looked up at the two wolves fighting the bear.

The wolf that had been biting the neck was thrown off, and landed on the ground. Getting back up to their paws, they ran back to the bear, and jumped at it, pushing it closer to the edge of the cliff. Stella and Alex took notice that the bear was getting closer to the cliff with each bite the second wolf was giving to its legs. These two strangers were planning on pushing the bear over the edge and sending it to its death. Alex and Stella moved out of the way and watched as one of the two wolves made one last jump at the bear, pushing with enough strength to send the bear toppling over the edge. The bear let out one last roar before it fell out of earshot.

One of the wolves was male. Stella could tell this by the sound of his voice as he gave the bear his last words. "Have a nice fall, dirt bag."

He turned back to his partner, giving them a high five and saying, "Nice job!"

The red and white furred girl said, "Thanks. You weren't too bad yourself. I didn't think we would pull it off."

"You have to have more faith in us than that..."

"Yea, I guess you're right."

Stella and Alex started laughing. Not because anything funny was said. But because they were going delirious. This would normally happen to anybody that had just escaped death after coming so close. After a few short moments, Alex eventually calmed down, realizing something. "Hey, Stella... Where's Trey?"

Stella's laughter died down instantly. She and Alex ran back inside the den, running over to their brother. Stella looked him over. He was unconscious, but alive. Four scratches went from his waist up to the mid-point of his stomach. Blood dripped from each cut. Stella knew these weren't from the bear, though. These were caused by Korosu the night before. These cuts were just ripped back open by the force of the bear's impact. The two who fought off the bear came inside. Stella winced, starting to feel the pain in her side come again. The pain had only been blocked out while the bear was there. But now that the moment was more calm, the pain became more noticeable.

Stella nudged her brother's head with her nose, and said, "Come on Trey. Please don't die on us. We need you, brother. Don't leave."

One of the two fighters came up to Trey, setting down a plant.

"Don't worry, guys. I'm not going to die. I'm going to be in pain, but i'm not gonna die."

Stella and Alex smiled at their brother, seeing that he was awake again.

The girl from the two that fought the bear said, "Hold still. This might sting a little but it will help."

She broke a piece of the plant, making a yellow-looking liquid ooze from it. She took the juice into her paw and began to rub it on to Trey's cuts, making him whine a little at the stinging sensation. Alex and Stella watched curiously, wondering what the girl was doing. As she rubbed the liquid over Trey's cuts, she explained. "Aloe Vera plant. The juice inside is used to support the natural healing process of skin that has been damaged. It is commonly used for sunburns, but it will help cuts as well."

The male that was with her stated, "Stop being such a pup. It isn't that painful."

Trey mumbled, "You wouldn't be saying that if it was happening to you..."

Once the girl finished, she stated, "There. That should help. Just don't wash that stuff out, okay? It will sting for a few more minutes but you will get used to it real quick."

Trey nodded and said, "Okay. Thanks for the— Wait, aren't you... You are! You're the girl from last night!"

She smiled and nodded, "Yea. You are one bright wolf, aren't you?"

Stella asked, "You wouldn't mind telling us what happened after the fight, would you?"

"Certainly. It has to do with this guy as well," she responded, gesturing to the male beside her.

Alex said, "Well, before any of us do anything else, I think we should all introduce ourselves to each other. I'm Alex."

There was a short silence before Stella let out a small chuckle at her brother, "Wow Alex... You pick _now_ to start introductions?"

"Well... I feel uncomfortable when I don't know the names of someone we're talking to... I just thought we would get that out of the way now."

Trey said, "You're right, bro." He turned his head to the two and said, "I'm Trey."

"Stella."

The brown colored male said, "My name is Jet."

The red-and-white female announced, "And I'm Serah."

A voice came from outside, "They're over here, Korosu!"

Alex, Trey, Stella, Jet, and Serah turned to see three black colored wolves blocking the only exit out of the den, growling as they approached.

* * *

**Phew... Longest chapter so far. Looks like whatever happened after the fight will remain a mystery for now. **

**Reviews are welcome!**


	10. Chapter Nine

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything. All credit goes to Crest Animation Productions and Lions Gate Family Entertainment. All I own are the original characters.**

* * *

**_The New Generation: Alex Trey Stella_**

**_Chapter Nine_**

"Where are we going again?"

"You'll see when we get there, Vince. It isn't that far, so calm down."

Vince, the red-furred male wolf lowered his head to look at the ground. His red-furred and green-eyed sister, noticing her brother looking bored quickly thought of something to say. She teased, "You miss your girlfriend already?"

"I told you, I don't even know her. So, she can't be my girlfriend. Okay? Just forget it, already."

Vince would never forget those blue eyes that he had seen the night before. His heart had pounded so rapidly when they locked eyes. He had only heard of love at first sight in stories his mother told to his sister when they were younger. Vince never believed in such a thing until that night. He would never forget that girl.

Trying to change the subject, he asked, "Will you please just tell me where we're... Whoa..."

Vince stopped in his tracks, frozen in place as he stared at the ground ahead of him. His sister stopped when he had and waved her paw in front of his face. She asked, "Hello? What's up with you? What are you—"

She stopped when she looked in the direction her brother was looking. In amazement, her eyes widened. "Whoa... What do you think happened here?"

"I don't know..."

As his sister took a few steps forward, Vince told her, "Stay close, Meryl... We don't know what did this."

Vince stepped closer to his sister so he could protect her if needed. The two had found an area with a lot of blood. The scent of it filled their noses. As the two continued walking, Vince and Meryl tried not to step on any of the blood. After all, what their parents think if they came home with blood on their paws? Nothing good. Of course, they could explain it. But, would their parents even believe them? They most likely would, but trying to avoid the blood was still a major priority.

Vince said, "Hope nothing is behind you, ready to chop you up in little pieces."

Meryl took a step closer to her brother, now a bit more nervous. "Don't joke about that, Vince!"

The two continued on, looking for anything other than the blood that was around. Along with the blood, there was also some fur that looked like it had been scratched off of a wolf's body. Which, it most likely was. Vince said, "We should probably tell the Head-Alphas about this..."

Meryl nodded in agreement and said, "Let's go... I don't want to be here any longer than I have to."

Vince turned around and started his way toward the pack, knowing exactly where the Head-Alphas lived. Not hearing his sister's footsteps, he stopped and turned around to look at her. She was staring straight ahead, mouth hung slightly open. Vince called, "You coming, Meryl? Or would you like to stay here and wait for me to come back?"

Meryl looked to her right at her brother and back to what she had found, lying not too far away. She said, "You better check this out..."

Vince ran back over to his sister and looked in the same direction as her. He gasped when he saw what she found. The body of a wolf, lying still and silent.

* * *

Lilly sat at the mouth of the den, her paw patting the ground with worry and nervous. She turned her head towards her eldest daughter, hearing Violet's voice. "Mom, i'm sure they're all okay. Dad is with them. He made a promise to Kate. Dad never breaks a promise, and he never will."

"I know... I'm just worried since they've been gone all night..."

Jake tried to assure his mother with a good explanation. "Don't worry, mom. We were all pretty tired after the Moonlight Howl. Maybe they just fell asleep. They're probably on their way home right now."

Lilly, looking back outside, took the red and white flower from behind her ear and looked at it. She treasured this flower ever since Garth gave it to her. Even though it wasn't the exact same one, she treasured it just as much. She would have liked to keep the first one, but it had eventually died without its connection to the soil. As Lilly looked at her flower, she spoke. "I hope you're right, Jake..."

Luna walked out of the den, taking a spot at her mother's side. Lilly looked at her daughter and smiled at the remarkable resemblance between them. Luna smiled, trying to cheer up her mother. Lilly laid down, head on her paws, as she looked out at the Central Pack territory of Jasper. Lilly looked up at the moon. Still visible, even in the daytime sky. It looked almost like a full moon, but everyone knew better than that. The moon was slowly working its way toward the New Moon phase, where it would be completely covered by its own darkness.

Luna sat up and walked back into the den, joining her brother and sister in a conversation about their experiences at the Moonlight Howl.

Lilly continued lying down at the mouth of the cave, head on her paws. Moving her tail in front of her face, she covered her nose to give it a little warmth from the light breeze. As Lilly looked out at the territory, her eyes drifted from family to family. She watched each wolf, trying to see if she could name all of the wolves she could see. Lilly liked to test herself with trying to match names with the wolves. The pack seemed much larger ever since the West and East were united by her marriage with Garth. She was just glad they didn't have to be rushed with the marriage like she had first thought.

As Lilly continued with the wolves, she grew more excited, glad that she was doing so well this time. Then, her eyes drifted to the trees of the forest. And further to the right was the river that had previously separated the two packs. Now, it just signified the place for families to enjoy some free time. Ever since the flowers and grass had grown in the once dirt-covered area, it was a beautiful sight. Until Winter came and made a blanket of pure white snow across everything and froze the water. Although she did have a memory she enjoyed to giggle at every now and then. She even giggled silently as she remembered Garth slipping on the ice as he walked on it, not even knowing it was ice until his head was on the ground.

Lilly's eyes continued toward the right, until she saw two red wolves coming toward her with a wolf on their backs. She stood up and gasped when she saw who was on their backs. Luna, Jake, and Violet came outside to see who was with their mother, and gasped at the sight of their father lying silent. Lilly asked, "What happened?"

Vince answered, "We found him in the forest... Amongst the blood."

Jake asked, "Was there anyone else around?"

Meryl answered, "No. Not that we saw."

Jake sighed, losing the hope that his cousins were safe. Lilly said, "Bring him into the den..."

Vince and Meryl nodded, carrying the unconscious and unmoving Garth into the cave. Jake, Violet, and Luna followed the others into the den. As Meryl helped her brother carefully set Garth on the ground, Vince stated, "I don't think he's dead. Just unconscious... Though from the looks of these scratches on his face and all the blood in the forest, it looks like he got in a fight with someone."

Lilly nudged Garth's head, trying to see if he would wake from his unconscious state. He stayed still and silent. Lilly put her ear to her mate's chest. Hearing his heartbeat, she said, "Yea, he's still alive. He still has a pulse. Thank you two for bringing him home."

Vince nodded and said, "No problem."

Meryl questioned, "Should we take you to where we found him? I think you should take a look at the area."

Lilly responded, "I'll check it out with Garth later, when he's awake."

"Okay."

"Again, thank you for bringing him home... Vince and... Mary?"

"It's Meryl."

"Right, sorry," Lilly apologized, "Hard to memorize everyone's names, you know?"

Vince said, "Don't worry about it. You'll get it soon."

"I sure hope so..." Lilly responded with a slight smile.

Meryl turned to her brother and said, "Let's get going, I still want to show you that place I was talking about."

"Oh right... Well, Lilly, it was nice to meet you."

"Nice to meet you too. Tell your parents I said hi, okay?"

As Vince and Meryl began running away, Vince said, "Will do!"

Luna whispered to Violet, "Was that...?"

"I—I'm not sure... I think it was, but I don't know... It sure looked like him..."

* * *

Alex, Trey, Stella, Jet, and Serah turned to see three black colored wolves blocking the only exit out of the den, growling as they approached. Trey got to his feet, his legs feeling weak after everything that had happened. First the fight from the night before, then getting attacked by a bear, and now this? What else was going to happen? Letting out a growl, they saw Korosu, Garth's brother, come in to view.

As Korosu walked in to the cave, the black wolves made space for him to walk through. He walked forward and said, "You may have gotten away last time, _pups._ But now," he glared at Jet, "There's nobody to help you."

Jet growled even louder, threatening to attack any minute. Trey growled, "I don't know what you want, Korosu, but leave us alone! Why do you want Serah so badly?"

"I don't want Serah... I want her _death_. She doesn't deserve to live after what she did to my daughter..."

"Why won't you believe me? I've told you; It was an accident!"

"It sure didn't look like it!"

"I didn't—"

Serah let out a yelp as Korosu rapidly scratched her across the face as he yelled, "Don't lie to me! I saw it with my own eyes, you can't try to make me believe otherwise. My daughter is gone because of you! And for that, I want revenge. I want your death to be caused by my own paws. And since these friends of yours want to help you so much, their blood will be spilled as—"

Serah jumped at Korosu, pushing him to the ground and snarling in his face. "Leave them out of this!"

Korosu pushed Serah off him, sending her closer to the mouth of the cave, where the three black wolves were standing. Two more wolves with black fur entered the den as well, joining the others. Korosu told them, "Get the others. This one is mine..."

The five black wolves ran from their spots, ready to fight Trey, Stella, Alex, and Jet. Trey was the first to attack, leaping at one wolf and sending him to the ground. Scratching the wolf's face, he ran for Korosu, who was stalking toward Serah. Alex used his shoulder to push another wolf into the wall before turning around and using his hind legs to rapidly kick the stranger in the stomach. Stella growled as she was pinned to the ground. She bit into the black wolf's shoulder, and scratched their face. Growling, she pushed the wolf off her and ran to her brother's side, who had just been scratched by Korosu and was backing away next to Serah. Jet was fighting off two wolves at once, making snide remarks as he dodged each snap made at him. "Oh! So close! Come on, slow-poke, you can do better than that!"

Dodging one last snap, he ducked under the attack and pushed the first wolf to the side and kicked the second hard in the face. He said, "That has _got _to hurt!"

He got himself free from the fight and ran to Stella's side. Alex jumped over a wolf that leaped at him, and ran to his brother's side.

Now Alex Trey, Serah, Jet, and Stella were backing away from the ring of six wolves; Korosu and the five unnamed black wolves were stalking toward them with growls. Trey looked at his back paws as he almost slipped. He noticed the cliff behind him and realized they were trapped between the wolves, and the cliff. He told the others this, which made them check to make sure. Korosu laughed, "Quite the predicament you have yourselves in..."

This made the five wolves around him chuckle. Jet whispered to the others, "We have to jump."

Alex asked, "Are you crazy! We'll be killed for sure!"

"You don't know that!"

Stella yelled, "Yes we will! We jump over, and fall on solid ground. We'll be lucky if all we get are broken legs!"

Jet countered, "We stay here and we'll get torn to pieces!"

Stella, Alex, Trey, and Serah looked back and forth between the cliff and the wolves who were getting closer by the second. They looked at each other and nodded in agreement. Trey said, "Let's do it."

With that, Jet grabbed Stella and jumped over the cliff, both of them screaming. Alex looked at his brother and said, "I hope we live to tell mom and dad about this."

He jumped over, leaving Trey and Serah with the six wolves who were watching in shock. Trey and Serah nodded at each other, showing they were both ready to go. With that, Trey and Serah jumped, head first, spiraling down the cliff as they held each other.

* * *

**Chapter Nine... COMPLETE. You enjoy it? I sure hope so! **

**Let me know what you think in a review.**


	11. Chapter Ten

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything. All credit goes to Crest Animation Productions and Lions Gate Family Entertainment. All I own are the original characters.**

* * *

_**The New Generation: Alex Trey Stella**_

_**Chapter Ten**_

Luna, Jake, and Violet were told to stay in the den until their parents returned. Garth had awaken at last, and was now walking through the forest with his mate, Lilly. His head hung low as he watched the ground, following at Lilly's side as they made their way to find the bloody area that was the site of the battle the night before. The weak burning sensation returned to the scratches on his face made by his brother, Korosu. These small burning feelings in the cuts alternated between painful, and able to be ignored.

"You okay, Garth?"

Garth lifted his head to see that his mate was looking at him, worried. He nodded his head, "Yea, i'm fine..."

He knew this was a lie. He wasn't doing so fine. Garth still wanted answers. Why is his brother like this? What happened to the kind pup he used to be? Garth remembered one thing his brother had said. '_After what she did to my daughter, I would prefer to die.'_

What happened to brother's daughter? Something had to have happened for him to want to kill the girl last night. Or for him to say he preferred to die.

Garth's nostrils were filled with the scent of blood, telling him he and Lilly had approached the site of the battlefield. He looked up to see areas of blood. Imprints in the grass and the snapped wood on the trees showed that some wolves were thrown to the ground, or pushed into a tree at some point. And yet... there was no sign saying that someone was still around... So, where were Alex, Trey, and Stella? Lilly looked to her mate and asked if he was okay again, seeing a tear form in his eye.

Garth lowered his head, and responded to his mate with a worried tone in his voice. "I just hope they're okay... I promised Kate nothing would go wrong... And now her pups are gone. This is all my fault... This happened because of me!"

He pounded his paw into the dirt as he made the last exclamation. Sadness and rage filled his body. Sadness for he did not know where his sister-in-law's pups were at, and they might be in danger. And rage for he knew that they were gone because of Korosu.

Lilly tried to assure her mate. "No, it's not your fault. You had nothing to do with this..."

"Yes, I did... I could have killed my brother right then, but I just couldn't do it."

"Garth..." Lilly sighed, "Nobody would be able to kill their own family. I see no reason as to why it should be done in the first place. After what you've told me, I think this is all Korosu's fault. He felt the need to try and kill the girl. He chased her all the way here. He's the one that took the pups." This calmed Garth down a bit. Lilly took notice of this and added, "Don't worry about them, Garth. They're my sister's and Humphrey's pups. They'll be alright. I promise you."

Garth looked to the sky, as if looking to the heavens for hope. Then he said, "I hope you're right about that..."

* * *

Trey crawled out from the water, shivering from the wind making contact with the water that drenched his fur and skin. He coughed to spit out the water and clear his throat. Crawling to land, he saw that Alex, Jet, and Stella were all there, shaking their whole body free of the water, beginning with their head and working their way back to their tails. Trey looked up to the sky at the towering cliff that he and the others had jumped from moments ago. He turned to his brother, and said, "Hey, Alex. We survived a cliff jump. There's something to tell mom and dad."

"I know," Alex laughed, "I was just thinking about that."

Trey laughed at this, and looked to Stella who was huddled up to Jet, trying to take some of his body warmth. Shaking the water from her fur wasn't good enough to warm her up. Trey teased his sister, "Should we give you two some privacy?"

Stella snapped her head to look at her brother, aiming a glare at him. Jet chuckled at this. Trey took a look around, noticing something.

"Where's Serah?"

Alex got up from where he was laying and asked, "Wasn't she with you?"

"Yea. We jumped at the same time, but I don't—"

Trey stopped as the pond they landed in returned to his eyes. He ran into the water, expecting to find her somewhere. He dipped his head under and looked as far as he could. Then he saw her. Serah was deep in the water, unmoving. Pulling his head out of the water, Trey yelled to the others, "She's down there!"

Without waiting for a response, he took a deep breath and dove underwater, swimming down towards Serah.

Stella and Jet watched the rippling water, waiting for Trey. Alex finished shaking the water off his fur, taking a spot in the sun light to get some heat.

Trey came back up from the water, the back of Serah's neck in his jaws. She was unconscious, her lungs filled with water. Trey swam towards shore, focusing on not letting go of her. Once he finally reached land, he got his feet and pulled her onto shore. After shaking the water from his fur, he looked at the unmoving Serah lying at his feet. Stella, Jet, and Alex joined him, forming a circle around her. Trey nudged Serah's head, hoping she would wake from that. No movement. Alex asked, "Is she dead?"

Trey put his head to Serah's chest and answered, "No. She still has a pulse, she's just unconscious."

Stella suggested, "Maybe she took in too much water and was knocked out from lack of oxygen."

Trey nodded, "Yea, maybe... I think I know what to do."

He turned Serah around so that she was lying on her back. Putting his paws on Serah's chest and pushing downward, a small amount of water leaked from Serah's mouth, and fell to the ground. Alex said, "Okay, that's... that's pretty gross."

Trey pushed down again, a little harder, forcing out more water from Serah's lungs. Then he pushed a third time, then a fourth, until Serah coughed. Trey took his paws off of her, putting them back on the ground. Serah turned back on to her stomach, coughing the water out of her throat and taking in the air she needed. Trey stepped in front of her, lowered his face to meet hers and asked, "You okay?"

"Yea..." She smiled and decided to try and ease the tension of the moment. She joked, "I guess i'm not as good a swimmer as I thought..."

There was a short moment of silence before Alex started laughing. Then Trey, Jet, and Stella joined, Serah letting out a small chuckle. The whole group was laughing. Laughing not only at the joke, but also at the fact that they had survived jumping from a cliff, and escaped Korosu. After having a near death experience, it was good to have a laugh. The moment was so filled with laughter, that Trey didn't expect it when Serah did something he never expected. She licked his cheek. Alex, Stella, and Jet all fell silent as Trey looked at Serah out of surprise.

"Thanks for saving me, Trey..." Serah said, smiling at him.

Trey smiled and replied, "You're welcome."

He rubbed his head against hers, smiling. This is where Stella used the same words that Trey had previously given her. "Should we give you two some privacy?"

Trey and Serah both glared at her. Alex said to his sister, "Ouch, you got a double glare... That's even worse."

* * *

**Okay... I'm going to end the chapter here. Hope you enjoyed. Looks like things are starting calm down. Also, i'm trying to throw in a bit of comedy after all the action. Again, I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Let me know what you think in a review!**


	12. Chapter Eleven

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything. All credit goes to Crest Animation Productions and Lions Gate Family Entertainment. All I own are the original characters.**

* * *

**_The New Generation: Alex Trey Stella_**

**_Chapter Eleven_**

"Kate," Humphrey nudged his mate's head. "Kate, wake up."

He took a step back when Kate's eyes fluttered, smiling at the tan-colored beauty waking up before him. She yawned and stood up. She stretched her legs while she asked, "What is it?"

Seth answered from the open door of the train car. "We're in Helena. Our jumping point is almost here."

Kate and Humphrey took a seat next to Seth and looked out at the scenery in front of them. The Canadian Express was on a bridge crossing a wide river of clear water. The place wasn't as beautiful as the area was last time they were here. Last time the grass was bright green and flowers of various colors were scattered throughout the forest. The sky was also clear and blue. But now... The grass was a dull green, some flowers were wilting, and the sky was filled with dark grey. Random flashes of light were seen in the distant, showing that a rainstorm was on the way.

Kate spoke up. "This would probably look more beautiful if it wasn't so dark and gloomy..."

The train finally reached land and Seth said, "Time to go."

Their jumps off the train were done with ease. After all, jumping _off _a train is a lot easier than trying to jump _on_ one. Specially when it is a moving train. With each separate landing of the wolves, imprints of their paws were left behind in the soft dirt. Humphrey, Kate, and Seth ran through the forest as they jumped over boulders and dodged around trees. That was when Kate felt the first raindrop hit her on the nose. She yelled to the others, "The rain is starting, we gotta hurry!"

Thunder roared through the forest as the three continued their run at top speed.

* * *

"Where are you going, Violet?" Lilly asked.

She had just caught her daughter about to walk outside. Violet stopped in her tracks and turned her head to look at her mother. "I was going to visit Meryl. She seemed nice earlier and I was going to see if she wanted to do something tomorrow."

"Oh, okay. Just make it quick, I don't want you out there when it starts raining."

"Okay. I'll be back soon." Violet turned back around and left the den, taking the path to the right that led down to the grass. Once her paws felt the soft feel of the grass, Violet immediately felt comfort, mostly because she had been standing on the rocky ground of her home for a most of the day. As Violet walked over the grass, she looked up at the sky and saw the dark grey clouds cover the beautiful blue that she had come to love. As she looked at the sky, she couldn't get her mind off of the male wolf that she saw at the Moonlight Howl. Those green eyes that she had seen. The muscular form of his body.

Before she knew it, she had found Meryl's scent in the territory, and began to follow it. She arrived at Meryl's den in a matter of minutes. She walked closer to the den and looked inside. Meryl, Vince, and their parents were lying down. She could tell that the parents were sleeping, but Meryl and Vince looked to be having trouble getting to sleep. She lowered her paw that had been suspended in the air and whispered, "Meryl... Vince..."

The two immediately lifted their heads once they heard their names. They got up and silently walked over to Violet, being careful not to wake their sleeping parents.

Meryl asked, "Who are you and what are you doing here?"

"My name is Violet. I just wanted to thank you two for bringing my father back home."

"No problem," Vince said, "We would have done the same for anyone."

"Yea, I know. I would too... Listen, when you both were at my place, you seemed nice. I was wondering if you might want to do something tomorrow. You know, just hang out?"

Meryl and Vince exchanged glances for a moment before Vince said, "Sure, why not? What do you want to do?"

Lightning flashed and rain started to pour down. Violet took notice of this and groaned, "Great... I was supposed to get home before the rain started. My mom didn't want me out in the rain."

Vince suggested, "Well, I guess you could stay here for the night. I'm sure our parents won't mind."

"Really? You'd let me stay here?"

"Sure," Meryl answered, "We'll go with you to your house and explain in the morning. Besides, your mom doesn't want you out in the rain, so if you stay here, you technically won't be in the rain, right?"

Vince and Violet both laughed at this, but stopped once the sleeping parents both stirred and Violet thanked them. "Alright, thanks for letting me stay."

"No problem. I can already tell we're going to be good friends," Meryl said.

* * *

Thunder roared as a sign that a storm was coming. Serah, Jet, Trey, Stella, and Alex had been walking through the unrecognizable forest for about half an hour. With no way or knowing where they were, they had no idea which direction to even walk. So, they just agreed on one direction and began walking. All were side-by-side. The order from left to right was Alex, Trey, Serah, Stella, and then Jet. Serah's head was hanging low as she looked at the ground, being careful that she didn't run into anything or stray from the group. Stella and Jet were talking about their families, often making each other laugh with funny stories as well. Trey was trying to find anybody, any creature that would tell them where they were. If the group could at least find out where they were, that would give them some idea as to which direction to go.

Alex bumped his brother, making Trey look at him. Alex nodded over to Serah, to which his brother looked over at her. Trey found that Serah's head was hanging low, as if she was upset about something. That or she was just bored. Trey turned his head back to watch in front of him as he asked her, "Why is Korosu after you anyways?"

The sudden question surprised Serah, making her stop in her tracks. Alex, Trey, Jet, and Stella noticed her sudden halt and came to a stop themselves, looking back at her. Serah looked as if she was holding back tears, her head turned away with her eyes shut tight.

Trey, wondering why she stopped, walked toward her and asked if something was wrong. She nodded her head and said, "No. It's just... I don't like to think about what happened..." One lone tear fell from Serah's eye as she finished the sentence. Trey looked to Stella, hoping for her help. She shrugged, not knowing what to do. So, he looked at Jet, and then to his brother. They both had no idea what do either. So, Trey looked back to Serah, who now had a second tear under her eye. He asked, "Do... you need some time alone?"

Wiping the tears from her eyes, she responded. "No, i'll be fine. Let's just find out where we are..." She continued walking, going past Trey. He sighed, wishing there was something he could do to cheer her up. Unable to think of anything, he turned around and jogged up to Serah's side before taking the same walking speed as her. Thunder sounded again before Trey could say anything.

Stella said, "The rain is going to start any moment... We should find somewhere to rest for a while."

The other four agreed with her and started their search for somewhere to sleep. After they found a den, and laid down for some rest, the rain began to fall. Stella laid down closer to the back of the cave, Jet setting down beside her. This surprised Stella, but she wasn't complaining. Alex laid down next to his sister while Trey decided to take a spot beside Serah, seeing as they were growing close already and he knew she was upset about something. Her head was resting on her paws in a matter of minutes. Trey could see the upset look on the girl's face asked, "Is there something I can do to help?"

Her voice had a sad tone when she answered. "I wish there was. But, there's nothing that can be done to bring her back..."

With that, her eyes closed to get some well-needed sleep.

* * *

**Well... It seems that Violet has made two new friends. Serah seems to get upset when she thinks about why Korosu is after her. What could this reason be? Well, you just _might_ find out in the next chapter...**

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	13. Chapter Twelve

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything. All credit goes to Crest Animation Productions and Lions Gate Family Entertainment. All I own are the original characters.**

* * *

**_The New Generation: Alex Trey Stella_**

**_Chapter Twelve_**

Morning had arrived. The sky still had a few clouds, but at least the storm was over. No more rain was falling. Puddles were left outside in the grass. All the dirt was turned to mud. Some of the flowers outside enjoyed the water and were now basking in the warmth of the sun's rays. The river that had once separated the two packs seemed a bit wider because of the extra water caused by the rain. The trees across the territory were all still dripping with rain water, adding more drops to the puddles of mud beneath them. But even with all this scenery, one wolf was growling in her den.

"What is _she_ doing here? This is not her home..."

"Mom," Vince said, "Relax. This is Violet, she's a new friend of ours."

"Okay. So, what is she doing here? You know I don't want you having girls over here, Vince. Not without mine or your father's permission. We've told you, we don't want to be grandparents just yet."

Vince rolled his eyes out of embarrassment at what his mother had just said as Meryl explained, "Neither of us invite her over here, mom. We told you about the wolf we found in the woods. This is his daughter. She came by to thank us and it started raining. What were we supposed to do? Make her walk home in the pouring rain? There's no way we would do that to anyone. So, we allowed her to stay the night."

Vince and Meryl were standing between their mother, and their new friend. They wanted to make sure they could defend Violet if they needed to. Their mother seemed to calm down after Meryl explained what had happened. Her mate, their father, was still asleep and they didn't want to get. Violet stayed quiet, not wanting to say anything that might make the mother upset. Their mom just looked at Violet and asked her, "Does your mother know you're here?"

"I told her I was coming here," Violet answered, "We were going to go and explain to her why I stayed."

"Okay..." she turned to her son and said, "Just ask me or your father next time before letting someone sleep over, okay?"

"I will," Vince assured her, "I promise."

"That goes for you too, Meryl. I don't want to wake up to see any unexpected wolves in my den."

"Alright, mom."

"Well... Violet. You should probably go tell your mother that you stayed over."

Violet nodded and turned around before exiting the den. Vince and Meryl followed after her. Their mother went back over to her mate and laid back down for some more rest. Vince hurried up to Violet's side and said, "I'm sorry about my mother.._. _You know parents. Always embarrassing..." His voice trailed off, feeling embarrassed as her remembered what his mother said about being a grandparent. Violet giggled and said, "Yea... Parents. They never give a warning before saying something that could make you blush."

"Oh, dang it..." Meryl said, accidentally stepping in a puddle of mud, covering her legs with the brown substance. Violet smiled and said, "Meryl, you should stick with just red. Brown doesn't look so good on you." This made Vince laugh. Meryl, stepping out of the mud, began wiping off the mud as she said, "Thanks for the advice..."

"Now, i'm not saying to go and smear blood all over yourself. Just don't go with brown."

Meryl smiled and took a step toward Violet as she said, "Let's see how you look with it on..."

Violet backed away, eyes wide with surprise. Before she could turn and run away, Meryl smeared the mud on Violet's chest, making her gasp in surprise. Meryl said, "You're right... Brown on red doesn't look so good on us girls..." Vince was laughing even harder at the scene before him. Violet took notice of this and walked over to the mud puddle. She stuck her paw in it, scooping up some of the substance as she said, "Maybe it will look better on a boy..."

This made Vince stop laughing and go wide eyed with surprise as he looked at Violet. He started nodding his head and said, "Oh, no..." Violet smiled and nodded, "Oh, yes..."

Before Vince could say or do anything, Violet threw the mud at her new friend, hitting him on the chest. Vince stood still out of surprise as he looked at the mud on his chest. He looked back to Violet and said, "Okay, you're going to get it now..." Vince ran toward the mud. He was planning on picking up some of the grime to throw at her, until he saw Violet start running. Then he felt his side get hit, and looked at his sister who had a guilty smile on her face. She said, "Mud-tag. You're it."

Vince smiled as Meryl took off after her new friend. Vince ran in the mud, getting some on his legs as he chased after the two girls, laughing as he did so. He, Violet, and Meryl were having the time of their lives as they continued playing mud-tag for the next half hour, throwing mud at each other, laughing, and falling to the ground on their back as they tripped over their own feet at random times.

Vince chased after Violet as he was aiming to tag her with the mud. They were running down a large hill, so they were both running with great speed. But sometimes, with great speed, loss of footing comes into play. Which is what happened to Violet, causing her to trip and started rolling down. The rolling made her even slower, sending her backwards into Vince. The two tumbled into each other, rolling down the hill. Both grunted when they hit the ground. As they rolled down, the two yelled and tried to stop themselves with no success. When the finally reached the bottom of the hill, they rolled a few more feet before they finally stopped.

Violet shook her head and groaned. She felt something soft against her stomach and realized that she had landed on top of Vince. Their eyes met for one short moment. The two stared at each others' eyes, mesmerized by the colors. They remained still for a few minutes until they heard a the sound of sliding. They broke eye contact to see what the sound was, and saw Meryl sliding down the hill. She said, "Oh... Well look at that..."

Violet backed away, ears flat against her head as she let out a nervous chuckle. Vince got back to his paws and said to his sister, "We weren't doing anything."

"I never said you were. You're denying something that you were never accused of, so now i'm a bit suspicious."

Vince groaned and said, "Just— Oh, never mind... Violet, we should probably go to your den."

Meryl made a sly smile and said, "Oh, you need some privacy?" Vince growled and glared at his sister, "I just meant we should go to explain to her mother why she didn't get home last night. You pervert..."

Violet couldn't help but smile at the sibling rivalry taking place before her.

A few minutes later, Violet, Vince and Meryl were walking up to Violet's den after cleaning off the mud in the river. Violet entered first, her eyes immediately going to her mother, who was sitting with Garth. Lilly asked her daughter, "Garth and I were worried sick about you, Violet. Where have you been?"

Violet's ears immediately flattened as she entered and said, "I stayed the night with Vince and Meryl..."

"I thought I told you to get back home."

The two entered the den as Vince said, "She had just gotten to our place when it started raining. We didn't want her out in the rain, so we asked her to stay."

This made Lilly smile. "Well, I guess that's fine then. But Violet, just know one thing..." Violet tilted her head, wondering what her mother was going to say.

"I don't want you having pups before you're married."

"Oh my god..." Violet lowered her head, her red cheeks well hidden underneath her red fur. Vince almost groaned at the embarrassment, but was able to hold it back. Meryl, however, started to chuckle silently. Vince said, "Maybe we should get going..."

Violet said, "Yes, please. Before mom says something else like that."

Meryl couldn't stop laughing at Violet's reaction to what her mother had said. Once Vince and Meryl left the den, Violet mumbled to herself, "First his mom, now mine? Why must parents be so embarrassing..."

* * *

Trey woke up first, the cause of it being the sound of whimpering from next to him. He looked around at everyone. Alex, Stella, and Jet were sleeping silently. But, Serah was running in her sleep, accompanied with whimpers. The sign of a nightmare. Lowering his head, he nudged her. "Serah. Wake up." Here eyes fluttered for a moment and Trey finally noticed that she had a tear under her eye. He wiped the tear away from her eye and asked her, "Are you okay?"

"It was... just a nightmare..."

Trey, wanting her to feel better, asked, "What was it about?"

"The reason why Korosu wants me dead..."

* * *

"She's not dead. I'm positive they survived that fall. I don't know how. I don't know where they are now, but they're alive."

Deciding not question Korosu's thought, the black-furred wolf still needed to know something. "Why are we after her anyways? You told us to track her down and kill her. But why? What's the reason for all of this?"

"Simple. I want revenge. And I've already told you why. She needs to pay for what happened..." Korosu looked to the ground and sighed as he finished. "She killed my daughter..."

* * *

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	14. Chapter Thirteen

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything. All credit goes to Crest Animation Productions and Lions Gate Family Entertainment. All I own are the original characters.**

* * *

**_The New Generation: Alex Trey Stella_**

**_Chapter Thirteen_**

_(Korosu's POV. Flashback)_

_It was a normal day just like any other. The sun was up, covering the territory with it's bright light, only to cast a shadow when a cloud passed in front of it. My daughter was outside playing with her friend. I didn't feel the need to have to watch over them, seeing as they were friends. So, I stayed inside the den with my mate. My life couldn't have been any better. I was as happy as I thought I could ever be. Lying down with my mate, Sasha. She was the nicest, and most beautiful girl in the whole world. No, not the whole world... The whole universe. My daughter had to be in second place for that title. My little girl was all grown up, at full size. Still, she wasn't as big as me, but next to her mother... Well, they might as well be twin sisters. I often got confused between them, until I found a way to distinguish the two from each other. I just had to say the name of one of them and see which one looks up or responds. _

_Again, I was lying with Sasha in the den while our only daughter was outside with her friend. She had only just met her about four days ago, but they were already great friends. They may as well have been sisters considering how close they were. I looked over to my wife, staring into her emerald colored eyes, surrounded by her red fur. I smiled and said, "You know I love you, right?"_

_She giggled and responded. "Of course, why do you ask?"_

_"Just don't want you to **ever **forget that, no matter what happens." _

_"You're the greatest wolf I've ever known, Korosu."_

_She nuzzled her head under my chin, making my smile grow. Then I jumped to me feet when I heard a noise. A noise that I wish I never heard. A yelp. Sasha asked me, "What do you suppose that was?"_

_"I don't know, but I'm going to find out. Stay here, okay?"_

_Sasha nodded and I ran out of the den, following the whimpering sound I could now hear. I saw a black male wolf running in the opposite direction of where I heard the whimpering and figured someone must have been killed or hurt. So, I put more energy into my legs to run even faster. I ended up in an area surrounded by trees when I slowed to a stop. I saw my daughter, lying on the ground. She was whimpering and shaking. As I stepped closer, the blood on her neck made itself known to my eyes. It was dripping from bite marks on her neck. She said, "Father..."_

_"Try not to speak, honey."_

_"I love you. And mom..."_

_"We love you too."_

_Her eyes closed, and let out the last of her breath. Tears started filling my eyes as I lowered my head on my daughter's neck. The tears from my eyes fell to her fur. I didn't even let out a sob of grief before I heard, "I— I didn't mean to..." __I turned around to see my daughter's best friend. Serah. Her tail was tucked between her legs as she backed away. I asked, "What have you done?"_

_"I'm... sorry..." __When she talked, I noticed her teeth. Red teeth. "You... You killed my daughter."_

_"I'm sorry... I'm sorry!"_

_My voice rose with each question, getting louder as my anger grew. "How could you kill my daughter? Your best friend? You two were like sisters, how could you do this?"_

_She took a step back out of fear when I finished the final question. I could see tears forming in her eyes as she looked to the ground. I started stalking towards her, growling. "You took her life... You need to know what it's like to have your life taken from you..."_

_Serah looked up at me, surprised. "No..."_

_I continued stalking toward her, as she started backing away. She said, "It was an accident..."_

_"You can't '__accidentally'__ bite someone on the neck hard enough to cause death!"_

_"Please, you have to believe me! I didn't mean to do it! I was—"_

_I let out a growl as I jumped at her, getting ready to commit murder. She was faster. Turning around she started running, tears falling to the ground as she ran. I heard her screaming as she ran. I chased her for what must have been three hours before I lost sight of her. She must have been hiding, because there was no way she could have outran me. I wasn't that far behind. I felt the wind rush by me as I yelled out, "Show yourself, Serah! Come on out and I'll kill you quick and easy. You won't feel a thing!"_

_I waited a moment, being as silent as I possibly could. I heard the leaves rustle off to my right. My head instantly turned towards the bush that it came from. I walked over to it and pushed the branches of the bush off to the side to see nothing. It must have been the breeze going by. I returned to the pack territory and let out a howl to gather the pack. They all rushed out immediately, joining me in the valley. Everyone was asking what this was about, but I just ignored the questions. Then, Sasha came up to me and asked, "Korosu, what are you doing? Where have you been? Where's our daughter?"_

_"She's gone, Sasha..." I raised my voice so the rest of the pack could hear. "My daughter has been murdered by someone in this pack. I chased after the killer, but I wasn't able to keep up with them on my own. I called you here to recruit anyone that would like to join me in my revenge."_

_I waited a second, and there was silence. I stated, "Come on. This is a killer we're talking about. Not only a killer, but one who has betrayed us."_

_I waited again, and still more silence. I was about to open my mouth to say more, but stopped when a black wolf stepped forward and said, "I'm in."_

_"Thank you. Anybody else want to join?"_

_"Oh, what the heck. If we're taking down someone that betrayed the pack, then I'm going."_

_With that black wolf making that statement, we were able to get three more black wolves to step forward. It seemed a bit strange to me that only the dark-furred wolves stepped forward. But I didn't care, as long as I was getting help to avenge my daughter. The first wolf that stepped forward asked, "When do we leave for the mission, sir?"_

_The second wolf said, "Well, first, I think we need a scent to follow."_

_I said, "Right. I know where you can get the scent..."_

_My mate came up to me and asked, "Where's our daughter's body?"_

_"The same place we're getting the scent. Follow me, and you'll find her."_

_Sasha and the group followed me to my daughter's body. The group sniffed the bite marks and picked up Serah's scent while I talked to Sasha. "I want you to take her back to the pack. Give her a proper burial..."_

_"I will, but where will you go?" _

_"I'm going with the group to track her down..."_

_"Please, come back soon."_

_"No worries, sweetie. With a group like ours, we should be back by tomorrow night."_

_"Sir, we have the scent. Are you ready to go?"_

_"Yes." I turned to my mate and nuzzled her as I said, "I love you, Sasha."_

_"Love you too, Korosu."_

_I took off after the group, as I began to describe who we were after. "Female. Red and white fur. Blue eyes. Her name's Serah. You find her, attack. But leave her alive for me to deal with, got it?"_

* * *

(Normal POV. Present Time)

Korosu went over this memory a few times as he lay down inside a cave with the other five members of the group. He watched as one of the members groaned in pain. Another wolf was saying, "Don't be such a pup. You're lucky I overheard them talking about this stuff before I called the group over."

He was applying the Aloe Vera plant's juice to his comrade's neck, where he had apparently been bitten.

"I'd like to see you stay calm while experiencing this kind of pain."

Korosu interrupted the conversation, "That's just physical pain... The pain of losing your daughter is much worse..."

"Don't worry sir, we're going to find that girl and her friends. You'll have your revenge."

"I just wish there was a way to bring my daughter back..."

Korosu got up and started to walk outside.

"Where are you going?"

"I'm just going out for some air. I'll be back soon."


	15. Chapter Fourteen

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything. All credit goes to Crest Animation Productions and Lions Gate Family Entertainment. All I own are the original characters.**

* * *

**_The New Generation: Alex Trey Stella_**

**_Chapter Fourteen_**

_(Serah's POV. Flashback)_

_I couldn't stop laughing. That was the funniest thing I had seen all day. She had just tripped over a rock. We were playing tag until she tripped on the rock and fell face-first in the mud. __"Come on Serah, stop laughing at me!" __Courtney got up to her paws and was shaking her head to get the mud off. "Come on, you know I can't laugh when you trip. You're such a klutz, Court."_

_"Hey, I swear that rock wasn't there a second ago."_

_"Yea. Right..." I walked over to her and started running my paw through her fur, gathering up the mud and throwing it to the ground. When I finally finished taking the mud out of her fur, I asked, "There. Better?"_

_"Much better. Thanks, Serah."_

_"No problem. Just try not to fall in the mud again."_

_"Oh, one more thing." She put a paw on my shoulder, smiled, and said, "You're it." __Then she took off. I stayed where I was for a short moment, shocked at what just happened. Then I began to chase after her, yelling. "No fair, Court! I wasn't ready!"_

_"Not my problem!"_

_She got so far ahead of me, that I lost sight of her when we entered the woods. Good thing I recognized her scent. I just followed the scent trail until I came to an area surrounded by trees. I noticed a flower or two throughout the area but my focus went to Courtney who was standing still. And I could hear her talking. I came up behind her asked, "Why'd you— Oh, who's your new friend?"_

_She was talking to a male wolf with black fur. He had a scar across his chest and looked as if he was either mad or bored. He said, "I'm not her friend. We just met. What are you two running from?"_

_"Nothing, we're playing tag. You want to play?"_

_"Me? Play something so pointless and stupid with two dumb girls? Forget it."_

_Whoever this guy was, obviously wasn't happy about something. He stepped between me and Courtney, about to walk away until I put my paw on him, making him stop in his tracks. "Excuse me?"_

_"Serah, just ignore him."_

_"No, i'm not going to ignore him. What did you just say?"_

_This wolf was standing between me and Courtney. "I called your little game of tag pointless and stupid and said you two were dumb girls."_

_"Okay... Listen here, **buddy**—"_

_"Serah, just forget it. Let him go."_

_"Yes. Listen to your little slut and let—"_

_"Okay, that's it," I growled, "Nobody says that about my friend and gets away with it."_

_The wolf pretended to shake in fear and said, "Oooh, i'm so scared." He stopped shaking and looked straight in my eyes when he asked, "What are you going to do to me?"_

_"I'm going to kill you."_

_"Yea right... You don't have what it takes to kill, do you? You little whore..."_

_I closed my eyes, growled, and jumped at him. I kept my eyes closed as I felt my jaws clamp down on flesh. I heard a loud yelp of pain, which made it known to me that I had hit my target. I closed my jaws tighter to make sure I cut the vein of life before opening my eyes. I saw the black wolf running away, obviously scared. At least he was gone. But, who... I opened my jaws and saw Courtney lying there. Her blood was dripping out from a bite mark. I backed away, tucking my tail between my legs. I felt that I was going to be sick. _

_"No... What have I done..."_

_Courtney was shaking, whimpering. She said, "It wasn't your fault... You didn't mean to..."_

_I heard footsteps coming toward us and I backed away. Her father, Korosu, ran up to her. He must have heard the yelp of pain. Courtney, seeing her dad approach her, said, "Father..."_

_"Try not to speak, honey."_

_Courtney spoke anyways. __"I love you. And mom..."_

___"We love you too."_

___I could tell that Courtney's eyes closed and I heard her last breathing flow from her lungs. Then, Korosu lowered his head onto his daughter's neck. I said,__ "I— I didn't mean to..."_

_____Korosu turned around and looked at me. I took a step back, my tail still between my legs and my ears flattening to my head. He asked me, "What have you done?"_

_"I'm... sorry..." He looked surprised when I spoke, probably seeing the blood on my teeth that I never wanted to taste. "You... You killed my daughter."_

_"I'm sorry... I'm sorry!"_

_His voice rose with each question that he asked. __ "How could you kill my daughter? Your best friend? You two were like sisters, how could you do this?"_

___I took a few steps back at the loudness of the final question. I could see the sadness in his eyes, the the anger in his voice overpowered the tears. Feeling the tears in my eyes, I looked at the ground. Then I heard growling and footsteps as he said, __"You took her life... You need to know what it's like to have your life taken from you..."_

_____I looked up at my friend's father, surprised at what he just said. He wanted to kill me. I started backing away as he stalked toward me. I said, "No... It was an accident..."_

_______"You can't '__accidentally'__ bite someone on the neck hard enough to cause death!"_

_________"Please, you have to believe me! I didn't mean to do it! I was—"_

_________He growled, jumping at me. Lucky for me, I was quick enough to duck under him. I turned around and started running. My tears of knowing I had killed my friend fell to the ground as I ran. I screamed, and sobbed, and ran. I could tell that Korosu could hear me because I could definitely hear each thud he made with every step he took. I don't know how long he chased me, or where I was even going. I just knew that I was running for a long time, away from him. I chanced a glance behind me to see how far he was. I couldn't see him, but I knew he was there. I knew that if I couldn't see him, then he couldn't see me. So, taking this chance of him losing sight of me, I jumped into a bush to hide._

_________ I waited a minute, and was about to move out until I heard his voice. __"Show yourself, Serah! Come on out and I'll kill you quick and easy. You won't feel a thing!" ____________My breathing was pretty loud, so I put my paw over my mouth keep quiet. He was standing right in front of me. Feeling the wind rush by me, I involuntarily shook at the cold air. And it made the leaves rustle. I saw Korosu's head turn toward me and I immediately knew that I had to run. I backed away from the bush, as silently as I could, and made my way behind a tree. There, I was perfectly quiet as I turned and silently walked away. I heard Korosu move the branches on the bush and let out a small growl. Then I heard his footsteps getting quieter and quieter. _

___________I walked for what must have been all night and eventually found a cave. I didn't know what became of that black-furred jerk, but I didn't care. He didn't matter anymore. As I laid down in that cave, I put my paws over my head and grieved over Courtney's death until sleep finally came. I couldn't go back to the pack. Korosu would find me there for sure. And what would my parents think? I couldn't go back. When I woke up the next day, I knew that it was going to be the first day of my life of being Serah, the lone wolf._

* * *

(Normal POV. Present Time)

Tears were streaming down Serah's face as she told Trey what happened. When she finished, Trey was about to say something until Serah got up started walking out of the cave. She stopped when Trey asked where she was going. She didn't look back when her answer came out. "I just need some air."

Trey looked to Jet, Alex, and Stella. They had woken up not too long ago and listened to her story as well. Trey stood up and told them, "I'm going with her. Who knows where Korosu could be now..." Stella teased, "Yea, that's why you're joining her."

Alex smiled at that comment, but Trey rolled his eyes and walked out of the den.

Serah was walking through the unknown forest. With each step, she left a paw print in the dirt. Tears were falling out of her eyes and rolling down to her cheeks and eventually leaving a small dark dot in the dirt beneath her. She was still upset over the death of her friend. What made it worse is the thought of her being the cause. Her own fangs had drained the life out of the best friend she ever had. Approaching a pond, Serah stopped at the edge of the crystal clear water.

She looked down into the water, and saw her reflection. She wiped the tears away from her eyes to clear her vision and saw the red and white reflection looking back at her. She stomped her paw into the water, rippling the water to make the reflection go away. When the water calmed, she saw Trey's reflection next to hers. Without looking up from the reflection, she said, "It's all my fault..."

"No, it's not..."

"Yes, it is."

"No. You said it yourself, it was an accident."

"But, it was my teeth that killed her."

"But they were meant for that jack-ass," Trey interrupted, "So, stop beating yourself up about it. It's not good for you."

"I know... It's just... I miss her so much. She was the best friend I ever had."

"So... I'm not a good friend?" Trey asked, his voice disappointed.

"No, no, no. I didn't mean it like that, I just—" She stopped, seeing a smile on his face. Serah made a small smile and said, "You were joking, weren't you?"

Trey turned around and took a step before saying, "Maybe... Maybe not... You'll never know."

Serah took a step toward him and chuckled. "Don't do that. You made me think you were really upset."

"Hey, I got you cheered up though, right?"

"Yea, that's true. Thanks, Trey."

"Do something for me, will you? Keep smiling. I—it makes me happy when you smile."

Trey turned around to face Serah, and saw a human about twenty feet off to her side. Aiming a gun at her. Trey's first thoughts were to yell something at her, but that would warn that human that they knew he was there. So, he ran at Serah. Serah asked, "What are you doing?"

Before she knew it, she was pushed backwards. Her eyes closed from the impact and she heard a loud _BANG!_ accompanied by a yelp. She landed on her back on the ground and quickly got up to her paws. Trey was lying on his side, unmoving and eyes closed, with blood dripping from a small hole put in his side. Serah let out a howl to warn the others.


	16. Chapter Fifteen

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything. All credit goes to Crest Animation Productions and Lions Gate Family Entertainment. All I own are the original characters.**

* * *

_**The New Generation: Alex Trey Stella **_

_**Chapter Fifteen**_

"You made it back in time," Dawn said, "But I don't know how much time she has left."

Kate, Humphrey, and Seth entered the den, following Dawn inside. Seth and Dawn sat to their father's sides as Kate and Humphrey walked up to Rose. She was lying on her side, a sign that she was close to her death already. Humphrey smiled as a tear formed in his eye, "Hi mom."

"H—Humphrey...?"

"Yea, mom. It's me. Kate's here too."

"Kate?"

Kate said, "Yea. I'm here... How are you doing?"

"Not so good... I don't have much time left, so i'm not too happy about that."

Humphrey said, "Well... Here's one thing you might be happy about."

"What would that be...?"

"You're not only dying as a mother... You're a grandma now."

"You... had pups?" Humphrey nodded and nuzzled Kate as his mate said, "Your son is a great father, Rose."

Rose smiled and said, "I'm glad to hear that... I just wish I could have met my grandchildren." Humphrey smiled and said, "You would have loved them, mom. Alex looks and acts just like me as does Stella with Kate. Trey's fur comes from me but his eyes are golden like Kate's."

Rose let out a chuckle and said, "Alex, Trey, and Stella... They all sound wonderful... Are they cute?"

"_Adorable_," Kate said. "Even if they _can_ be a handful at times, we still love them."

Rose's eyes started closing as she said her last words, "That's nice..."

Humphrey buried his eyes into his mother's neck, his tears starting to fall. He said, "Bye mom... Even though I didn't get to know you much, I'll still miss you as though I knew you my whole life."

Kate's tears came too, as well as Dawn's, and Seth's, and Jack's. They all took a deep breath and let out a long, low-pitched howl of sadness. Then they heard the howls from the other pack members of Helena National Forest join in.

* * *

Jet left the den a few minutes ago, telling the others that he needed water. Alex was lying down at the entrance of the den. His ears were standing straight up. "Stop trying to eavesdrop, Alex. Even if you _can_ hear them, it's wrong to listen in on a private conversation."

"Who said it was private? They sure didn't."

Stella thought about this a second and said, "Oh, you're right, they didn't. Tell me what they're saying. I can't hear them as well as you can."

"Well, I don't hear them anymore. The last thing I heard was Trey saying it makes him happy when Serah smiles."

Stella smiled and said "I knew he—" _BANG! _Alex and Stella jumped to their paws, both hearing the sound. "What was that?"

Alex answered, "I wish I knew... It didn't sound good though."

Then they heard Serah's howling. Alex and Stella both ran towards the howling. A minute later, after jumping over rocks and logs, they finally came to the sight of a human with a gun. Aimed at Serah. Serah was backing away, her tail tucked between her legs. Stella ran for the human, leaping onto a log before jumping at the weapon. Time seemed to slow as she jumped. Her jaws clamping on to the gun and her claws leaving three scratches on the pale face of the man. Time returned to normal as Stella landed on the ground, turning around to face the human. The man had his hand on his face, over the scratch. He shook his fist at the wolf and yelled something before running away angrily.

Stella spat the weapon out of her mouth, dropping it to the ground before turning to Serah. "What happened?"

Serah's tears formed themselves in her eyes. She pointed to Trey's body and said, "We... We were talking and... he just suddenly sprinted at me. Not running, _sprinting._ I asked him what he was doing but before I knew it, I was pushed backwards..." Serah's voice went weak on the last part, "and he was hit."

Stella walked over to her brother and nudged his head. "Trey... Trey, come on... Wake up..." Nothing happened.

Stella yelled, "JET! COME HERE, QUICK!"

Alex went over to his brother and examined him. "It... doesn't even look like he's breathing..."

Serah's voice was soft and quiet when she spoke. But it was just loud enough for the others to hear. "Trey... This is all my fault..."

"No, Serah. This wasn't your fault. You had nothing to do with this. It was because of that human and—"

"I should have just let Korosu kill me when he had the chance!"

"That can be arranged..." Alex and Stella turned around to see Korosu standing behind them with an evil grin on his face. Too shocked at his presence, Stella and Alex said and did nothing as he walked between them. His eyes were locked on Serah's.

She said, "I know you're here to kill me, so just do it... If Trey is dead, I want to be with him."

Korosu found this statement interesting and asked, "Why? What makes him so important to you?"

"Because," She looked over at Trey's unmoving body and said, "Even though I never told him this, I love him... If he dies, I die too." She looked back at Korosu and continued, "I know you want me dead for killing your daughter, but the truth is, I didn't do it on purpose. It truly was an accident. But I don't even care anymore. Kill me if you want. I can't keep living with death everywhere I go. I'd rather die than see another wolf get killed."

"Okay then... As I said before, that can be arranged."

Serah raised her head to give Korosu a good aim for her throat. He walked toward her, opening his jaws. When he felt her neck enter his mouth, he slowly started closing his jaws. His teeth penetrated through the skin, drawing blood. He paused the closing of his jaws at Alex's voice. Alex took a step forward as he said, "Serah... don't do this..."

Serah, closing her eyes, sighed, "Good bye..."

* * *

**One of the saddest chapters I've written... R.I.P. Rose... :'(**

**Reviews, please. **


	17. Chapter Sixteen

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything. All credit goes to Crest Animation Productions and Lions Gate Family Entertainment. All I own are the original characters.**

* * *

**_The New Generation: Alex Trey Stella_**

**_Chapter Sixteen_**

"I know you want me dead for killing your daughter, but the truth is, I didn't do it on purpose. It truly was an accident. But I don't even care anymore. Kill me if you want. I can't keep living with death everywhere I go. I'd rather die than see another wolf get killed."

"Okay then... As I said before, that can be arranged."

Serah raised her head to give Korosu a good aim for her throat. He walked toward her, opening his jaws. When he felt her neck enter his mouth, he slowly started closing his jaws. His teeth penetrated through the skin, drawing blood. He paused the closing of his jaws at Alex's voice. Alex took a step forward as he said, "Serah... don't do this..."

Serah, closing her eyes, sighed, "Good bye..."

She felt the pressure increasing around her neck, blocking the air from her emptied lungs. She naturally started to choke, her body making an attempt at finding some oxygen to fill her emptied lungs. With no luck at finding oxygen, Serah's eyes closed and her head fell motionless.

"Stop it, Korosu!" Jet yelled, rushing to the scene. He ran in front of Korosu and growled. "Don't do this. She didn't mean to kill your daughter! Courtney's death was an accident!"

Korosu's eyes widened at the mention of the name. He let Serah fall from his jaws, throwing her to the side and growling. "How do you know my daughter's name?"

"Serah told us everything. You didn't see what happened before you got there."

"I saw my daughter die with bite marks on her neck. Serah was there with blood on her teeth. She killed my daughter."

"Yes, but not intentionally. Let me ask you one thing, did you happen to pass a black wolf on your way to the area?"

_The black wolf... _Korosu thought, an image of that wolf flashing in his brain. He had just shrugged that wolf off as not important, until now. Korosu needed to say nothing. Jet could tell from the look on his face that he had indeed passed the wolf. So he continued, "That wolf was Serah's real target... He called your daughter a slut, angering Serah in the process... She wanted to kill that bastard for what he said. But when she made her attack, he evaded the teeth and ran away, but Serah didn't realize that she had actually caught on to Courtney's throat until she was sure that the vein was cut. That's when you approached the scene."

Jet, looking Korosu in the eyes said, "So look what you've done. You've killed an innocent wolf that was guilty of nothing."

Stella, who had approached Serah's body interrupted. "Actually... She isn't dead." Jet and Korosu looked over at Stella, curious as to what she meant. "She's still alive. Her chest is moving, so she's still breathing. The lack of oxygen must have knocked her unconscious."

"Is... She okay?"

Stella, Alex, Jet, and Korosu looked over to where the voice came from. Trey was still lying down, but he was looking at them, his eyes half open and his voice weak. Stella smiled, happy that her brother was alive as well. "Yes. She's fine. She just needs some rest."

Alex tried to ease the tension. "Quick, someone try to kill me. I want to see if I stay alive too."

Trey laid his head back down, chuckling at his brother's comment. Stella joined in, along with Jet. Alex was surprised to find that even Korosu so much as smiled. He asked, "Hey Korosu... Do you know where we are?" Stella, Jet, and Trey's ears twitched at the question and they fell silent to hear the answer. After all, there was no way of knowing which direction to go to get home if they didn't know where they were. Korosu looked around for a short moment, sniffing the air before he spoke. "No idea... But I think I know someone that might, follow me."

Korosu started walking, passing Stella, Jet, and the unconscious Serah as he walked toward the trees. He stopped at the edge of the trees, hearing no footsteps behind him. Looking back, he asked, "You guys coming?" Jet nodded and slipped his nose under Serah's body. Lifting his head up, he got the result he was going for. The unconscious Serah was on his back. Stella went over to her brother and did the same as Jet, getting her older brother on her back. Trey grunted at the pain in his side, yelling, "Take it easy!"

"Sorry! It's not like I know exactly how to handle an injured wolf..."

Trey rolled his eyes and decided to just try and get some rest. He would need it if he was going to heal any faster. Closing his eyes, he fell asleep almost instantly. Stella, Alex, and Jet walked after Korosu, following him through the forest. The whistles of birds accompanied the group as they walked. After about fifteen minutes of walking, Stella turned to Alex and said, "Here, you carry him for a while. My back is starting to kill me."

"Okay." Alex bowed his head down and soon felt the pressure of Trey's body on his back, hearing his brother groan at the pain. As they continued walking, Jet asked Korosu, "So... Where are you taking us?"

"To the den that my group stayed in for the night. One of them should know where we are, considering they were a lone wolf once."

Jet seemed interested in the term. "Really... A lone wolf?"

"Yea. I figured he could be useful in tracking Serah down, considering he was alone and had to hunt for himself. But now that I know the truth about what happened, his skills will be used to help you all get home."

Jet looked to the ground and mumbled to himself, "Not all of us..." Stella heard this and left Alex's side to approach Jet. "What do you mean 'not all of us'? Don't you need to get home?"

"I would if I could. I have no home... I've been living as a lone wolf for the last few weeks."

"Why?" Alex asked, adjusting Trey's body on his back.

"It all happened because of that damn forest fire..." Jet growled.

* * *

**Phew... Trey and Serah are still alive! And Korosu learned the truth of what really happened! And Jet... was a lone wolf! Whoa... Find out how that happened in the next chapter!**

**Leave a review!**


	18. Chapter Seventeen

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything. All credit goes to Crest Animation Productions and Lions Gate Family Entertainment. All I own are the original characters.**

* * *

**_The New Generation: Alex Trey Stella_**

**_Chapter Seventeen_**

_(Jet's POV. Flashback)_

_My brother just gave me a play-bow, to which I responded by mirroring his posture. We were both outside, having fun like any other day. Both of us were laughing at the entertainment as we kept tackling each other. Sure we were playing pretty rough, but could you blame us? We are boy wolves after all. We don't hold back when it comes to play-fighting. At times, it even became too serious. But mom and dad would stop us before it went that far. _

_I just tackled him and held him down as I said, "Bet you can't catch me."_

_I pushed myself off of him and started running towards the trees. I knew he was definitely faster than me, but I was more nimble when it came to dodging and weaving through the trees. Which was why I went for the trees in the first place. Not only was it just for fun, but it was also helping him with keeping his footing. I knew it would be of use to him for his Alpha duties. So, in a way, I was training him. Me, training an Alpha by playing chase. I couldn't believe it._

_I jumped forward, just barely dodging a swipe that my brother made for my tail. I laughed and swiftly turned around a corner, making a complete U-turn around a tree. This confused him for a second, making him slip and fall off his paws. Then I felt bad when I heard him whimpering. I ran back to where he was and saw him laying on his side on the ground. I walked closer to him and asked, "Are you alright?"_

_"I—I think..."_

_I was taken by surprise when he jumped on me, tackling me to the ground and pinning me on my back. He finished his statement, "I think I just won the bet that you made."_

_We both shared a laughed before we noticed a strange smell. Letting me back up to my paws, he asked if I could smell it too to which I answered, "Yea. Smells like... Fire."_

_We both looked at each other, wide-eyed before running back in the direction of the territory. Then we reached the fire. It cut us off from the territory. Our thoughts were to run around the fire, but we found ourselves trapped in a circle of flames. Everything was burning. The trees, the grass, the logs, the bushes. It even seemed as if the fire was on fire at times, making the situation seem even worse. The two of us howled for help, scared for our lives. _

_A few minutes later, I found myself being picked up by the back of my neck and thrown through the fire by my Alpha mother. She threw me towards the territory, through the wall of fire. I landed on the other side, checking myself for any fires I might need to put out. I found nothing. My dad ran past me, telling me to stay where I was before disappearing into the blazing wall. It wasn't too long before I heard a tree crackling followed by two yelps of pain. I knew something had happened, but I didn't know to who it was. I ran to my friend's den, not knowing who else to go to since his parents were the head Alphas of the pack. I cried, "Forest fire... My parents... What— What do I do?"_

_The two head Alphas didn't answer me, but instead ran to check out the fire. My friend telling me, "It's okay, Jet. Don't worry, they'll be fine. Your parents are amazing Alphas."_

_The next day I awoke, I found that it had rained over night and the forest fire had been put out. I immediately started looking around where the fire happened, looking for any sign of my parents and brother. Then a paw landed on my shoulder. I looked back to see the head Alpha-male. He told me, "I'm so sorry... Your parents are..."_

_I didn't give him a chance to finish before I shoved his paw off me and yelled, "You're lying! My parents aren't dead!"_

_"Yes, they are. I would show you their bodies, but I don't think you want to."_

_"Show me. Show me my parents."_

_He sighed and turned around. I followed him to an area where a few trees had fallen from the fire. I saw blood on one of the nearby trees and looked to the Alpha for an answer. He told me, "The fire made the tree too weak and it snapped, collapsing on your parents. We were able to get the trees off of them, but..."_

_"What about my brother? Where is he?"_

_"We looked all over the place. He's gone. That doesn't mean he's dead, necessarily. For now, we're just going to say that he's missing."_

_The tears had already formed in my eyes and were just getting worse now. I made a decision. "I'm leaving."_

_"What?"_

_"I'm leaving the pack, and don't you dare try stopping me."_

_I turned around but before I could start running, his paw stopped me as he said, "Wait."_

_I looked half-way back. Unable to see him, but showing him that I was listening. He continued, "Just wait a few days. Your brother might return. If he doesn't, then you can do what you want."_

_The sun and moon flew across the sky. Those few days passed quicker than I could have imagined. I stayed with my friend, having no other home to go to. I waited for any word about my brother. Nothing came up. I finally stood up and said, "That's it. I waited a few days just like you asked. He's gone, and he's not coming back. Now, i'm leaving."_

_The Alpha said, "Fine... But just know one thing. If you leave, you can't come back."_

_"Sounds good to me. Too many bad memories here already, I never want to come back to this place."_

_I ran out of the den and disappeared into the trees of the forest to start a new life. As a lone wolf. Jet, the lone wolf._

_

* * *

_**Learned a little about Jet's past in this chapter. Sorry in advance if it takes a while to update. School is taking its toll on me along with the e-books I've been reading. White Fang is an excellent book. If you like wolves, you HAVE to check it out.**


	19. Chapter Eighteen

**_The New Generation: Alex Trey Stella_**

**_Chapter Eighteen_**

The group had stopped walking to listen to Jet as he told what happened on "The Day." That's what he called it. Trey was laid down on the ground, and Serah was still unconscious. She was put down beside Trey. He didn't mind it, seeing as she kept him warm with her body heat.

Tears were dripping down Jet's cheeks, eventually falling to form tiny mud drops once it combined with the dirt on the ground. He missed his parents, and his brother. He had accepted their deaths, but it was still hard for him whenever he thought about The Day. Stella was sitting next to Jet, looking at the ground when he finished up the tale. "I'm so sorry..." she said.

"Don't be," Jet sighed, "It wasn't your fault. And I know there's nothing I can do to bring them back."

"I wish there was something I could do," Stella said. She then proceeded to rub the top of her head under his chin. This made Jet's heart almost skip a beat in surprise before a small smile formed itself on his face. He put his right paw around her back and smiled at the affection she was giving him. Something about this moment made his heart warm a little.

"There you are, Korosu!"

The group of five black wolves ran up to the group, growling at the three. They paid no mind to Trey, seeing him as no threat with his current injuries. Same with Serah since she was unconscious. The first black wolf to approach said, "I see you found them, sir."

Korosu replied, "Don't worry, guys. We don't need to kill them anymore." The small group looked at him, confused. Korosu proceeded to explain everything to the black wolves, telling them everything that he was told. He finished with, "So, you see; It was all an accident."

The five wolves stood there silently for a short moment, staring at Korosu with a face of anger. "You can't be serious..."

"You had us hunting this girl with the intention of drawing blood all this time, for an accident?"

"I can't believe this."

Jet, Stella and Alex were standing side-by-side by this time and they just exchanged glances. They were all nervous about what the group was going to do. Since Korosu no longer had the intent of killing Serah, what were the wolves going to do? Before anyone could do or say anything else, Jet stepped forward and tried to ease things down. "Hey, I'm sure this wasn't a _complete_ waste."

"Oh really?" One of the larger members of the hunters asked. He came up to Jet and stood just in front of him. Jet stepped back, surprised by the large size of the wolf. "We've been hunting this girl for two weeks to have her death, just to find out we've been doing so because of an accident, and we're going to let her live. How is this not a waste? We might as well have just stayed home."

Jet's voice was shaky when he started to speak. "Well, has this hunt helped anybody with their tracking skills? Or how about the chasing helping your speed? And what about survival skills? I'm sure there were no caribou out here to hunt down."

The black wolves stood silent for a moment, realizing the truth in Jet's words. Stella and Alex were able to hear a couple words coming from the talking. "I am a bit faster than before." "The boy is right, I can smell at a farther distance than I could back home."

Jet went back to stand beside Stella, whispering to her, "Same applies to me, ever since I left home."

The last word made Stella's mind go back to Jasper. She walked over to Korosu, and tapped him on the shoulder to get his attention. He looked at her, and Stella said, "You said one of them knew how to get to Jasper?"

"Oh, right." Korosu cleared his throat and raised his voice so it would be heard over the black wolves. "Levant."

A black wolf, with green eyes, walked out of the group and went up to Korosu. The group kept talking, changing the conversation to various subjects. The one that stepped forward was the lone wolf that Korosu had mentioned earlier. The one that was good with directions."Yea?"

Korosu asked, "You're good with directions, right Levant?"

"Yes sir, I can take us anywhere in Canada. Why?"

"Do you know how to get to Jasper National Park?"

"Oh," Levant said, "I know exactly where Jasper is. I used to live there as a pup."

"Good, do you think you could show them their way home?"

"Of course I can." Levant look over to Jet and asked him, "Are you and Serah tagging along?"

"Well, I'd like to stick with my new friends as long as I can. And after what Serah said about Trey, I'd guess that she would want to go as well."

This interested Trey, whose head lifted up when he heard what Jet said. Trey said, "Wait, what? What'd she say about me?"

Jet opened his mouth to answer, but Stella put her paw over his mouth and whispered to him through gritted teeth, "Maybe she should tell him herself."

"Tell me what?" Trey called again. "What did she say? Tell me."

Stella smiled to him and nodded her head side-to-side, taking her paw down from Jet's mouth. The black wolves were watching with interest. Korosu said, "I agree; if Serah really meant it, then I'm sure she will want to tell you herself. And let her tell you on her own, don't ask about it."

Trey groaned and mumbled, "Fine... This better be good if my own siblings are keeping it secret."

"Anyways..." Stella said, "Are you too injured to walk, Trey?"

"I should be able to walk. Let me try." He started moving his legs, grunting at the immediate pain. Stella said to take it easy, and he slowed down a little. Alex scratched his side, wondering why he was getting itchy all of a sudden. His mind switched back and forth between wondering what it felt like to get shot, and why his side was suddenly so itchy. After a short moment, Trey was able to sit up. It was hard for Stella to imagine the pain he must be feeling. Korosu was impressed.

"You're a tough pup," Korosu was saying his thoughts aloud. Trey, Alex, Stella, Jet, and the group of black wolves looked at him. He continued. "Such a young pup, yet you can still sit up after being shot. You're tougher than I thought you were."

"Not really," Trey said. "I'm just a quick healer."

"Well," Stella said, getting back to the subject, "you can sit up. But can you walk?"

Trey pushed off with his hind legs, managing to stand on all four paws. When he took a step, he felt an extreme pain in his side, making him involuntarily grunt. After taking a few more steps, the pain was a bit more bearable, but still excruciating.

"Yea, I can walk. Just not as fast as usual. And... each step brings pain. But I can bear through it. I don't want anyone carrying me if I can walk."

"Okay," Jet said. "What about Serah, who's carrying her first?"

Trey looked over at the girl before turning back to Jet. "Let's see if we can wake her up first." He managed to walk over to Serah's unconscious body. Putting his paw on her side, he started to gently shake her. "Serah... Hey, Serah. Wake up."

She stirred in her sleep, and spoke in a whiny voice, "I don't want to go to Alpha school yet, mommy."

Alex immediately started laughing along with Stella. Trey felt embarrassed. Jet, Korosu, and the others were confused as to what was so funny. Trey almost shouted, "It's not funny, guys!"

He then started to hear Serah laughing. Trey looked back at her to see she was getting to her feet. "You can thank Stella for that little piece of information, 'Momma's boy'." Trey glared at his sister, giving a stare that said she was going to regret she ever said that.

Jet finally spoke up. "Would someone please tell me what's so funny?"

Stella answered, "It was the day we were leaving for Alpha school. Trey didn't want to leave because he would miss mom too much. Ever since that day, we've been teasing him about it, calling him a Momma's boy."

Jet was barely able to stop his laughter, but the smile went unsuppressed. Korosu let out a silent chuckle, and the group of black was smiling as well. Trey was so tempted to ask what Serah had said about him, just to change the subject, but the others had said it would be better to let her say it when she was ready. Serah looked at Trey and asked in a caring voice, "You okay?"

"Apart from the bullet in my side, and the pain with each step I take? Yea, I'd say i'm doing pretty good."

Serah went to his side and started to look at the wound, moving Trey's fur out of the way so she could see. After a short moment of looking at it, she put her paws back on the ground and looked at him as she spoke. "Bullet is too deep to get out. I bet a bandage will help ease the pain a little. Jet, do you know where to find another one of those Aloe Vera plants?"

"I'm not sure, exactly. Sorry..."

"Did I just hear you right? Did you just say 'Aloe Vera plant'?" one of the black wolves asked, walking up to Serah.

"Yea, do you know of it?"

"Oh, yea. It's yellow juice is good for scratches and cuts, isn't it?"

Trey nodded, "It was helping the other day with the scratches from our battle in Jasper."

Korosu came up and said, "Gakusha is very knowledgeable with plants. He helped us avoid poison ivy this whole time."

Stella said, "There's poison ivy out here? I'm glad I didn't walk through any of the bushes, then. I would never be able to tell the difference."

"Yea, but about that Aloe Vera plant," Gakusha said. "I've heard that they could be found South of Jasper."

"Well, that's good," Levant said. "Jasper is actually north of here."

"Great," Stella said. "Everything is set then. We'll head North and get the Aloe Vera plant for Trey on our way home."

"Hope we get that stuff soon," Trey said.

Levant said, "What are we going to do until night fall?"

Jet asked, "Why wait for nightfall?"

Levant explained, "I use the stars as a map. If I don't see them, I'm lost. That's why we've been hunting for Serah at night, so we don't get lost or end up going in the wrong direction."

Stella looked at the sun's position in the sky. It looked to be about mid-day. She sighed. "A whole day of whatever we want to do, I guess."


	20. Chapter Nineteen

_**The New Generation: Alex Trey Stella**_

_**Chapter Nineteen**_

Violet laid down in the back of the den, exhausted after playing for so long with Vince and Meryl. She knew that tonight was the night for the girls' night to hunt. With so many Alphas in the pack, they had to split the work between boys and girls. Each day was being switched between the male hunters, and the female hunters. Violet, being a female Alpha, knew she needed the rest if she was to be hunting later. Hopefully they could still catch a caribou with Stella gone just as the guys had without Trey.

_It's pretty quiet in here..._ Violet thought to herself. Opening her eyes, she looked around to see Lilly lying down as well. But Garth was sitting at the opening, looking out at the territory, being silent. Violet looked around a little more, and that's when it hit her. She immediately got up to her paws and walked over to her father. "Hey dad..."

Garth couldn't keep himself from jumping at the surprise. "Oh, Violet... You scared me. I thought you were sleeping."

"Sorry dad," Violet replied, smiling. "I didn't mean to scare you. I was just wondering where Luna and Jake were at."

That caught Garth by surprise, and his eyes widened. "Now that you mention it... I haven't seen them all day."

"Do you think mom knows where they are?"

The two looked over at Lilly when her voice caught their ears. She was still lying down, tired, but she was awake. "Since Jake has the day off today, he took Luna outside to play. He said something about teaching her a few Alpha tricks."

Garth and Violet looked back to each other. The father shrugged and said, "Guess that answers that."

* * *

Jake and Luna stood side-by-side, looking up at a cliff that was towering over them. A rock and a tree were at the bottom, with a branch sticking out of the cliff-side a little higher than half-way up, along with another branch near to it even closer to the top. Jake looked to his sister and asked, "Think you can make it?"

"I'm no Alpha," she answered. "I doubt I can make it up there."

Jake thought for a second and smiled. He looked at his sister, who was looking up and down the cliff. "Oh come on, I've taught you some of the most important things about being an Alpha. I bet you can do this." Luna looked as if she wasn't feeling very confident in herself, and Jake noticed this. So he quickly thought of a solution that would possibly get her to try, if he could make it tempting enough for her. "How about we make it interesting, then..."

Without turning her head, Luna turned her eyes to give her brother a side glance. "I'm listening."

Jake smiled and said, "Hold on a second. Let me check something out real quick."

He took a few steps back, and made a running start. Running toward the boulder, Jake was smiling at what he had in mind. Jake leaped onto the boulder and jumped up at the cliff-side. Giving his body a complete three-sixty, he turned around and grabbed the tree's branch with his jaws. Using his weight, he swung himself forward and let go. He shot from the branch, back to the cliff-side, hitting it with his paws. Pushing off the wall, he grabbed the lowest branch sticking out of the wall in his jaws. Using his weight again, he made a few swings to gather speed before letting go and flying upwards to another branch. He grabbed it with ease, and shot himself up on to the cliff, landing on his paws on the edge.

He turned around to see Luna, awe-struck by what she had just seen. Her jaw was hanging as low as it possibly could. Jake had just gone from being at her side to being at the top of that cliff in a matter seconds; fifteen seconds at the most. Jake thought to himself, _Yep, it's definitely possible to make it up here. Which means... _"Alright, Luna, here's the deal." She snapped back to reality at the sound of her brother's voice. He continued, "If you can make it up here before sunset, I'll do whatever you say for a month."

_A month, huh? Sweet. _"What if I can't make it up there, then what do I have to do?"

Jake made a devilish smile to himself and answered. "You tell me what boy in the pack you have a crush on, and let me tell three wolves of my choice." Luna took a step back, and gasped, at the shock of her brother's words. _How could he possibly know? _Jake added, "Don't worry, if you lose and have to tell me, I won't tell the guy, okay?"

She spoke with sarcasm in her voice. "Oh, that makes me feel a _lot_ better, Jake. Just tell me one thing; How did you know?"

"You talk in your sleep. But you never say the guy's name."

_Curse my sleep-talking... _Luna growled to herself. Then she said, "Three wolves, huh... Who?"

"I'll tell you that _after_ you lose the bet. So, what's it going to be? You want to take the risk of letting that information out to have a servant for a month?"

Luna looked to the ground, thinking about the deal. She could save herself the embarrassment by walking away now, or take the risk and have her brother do whatever she wants for a month. Is it worth the risk? She looked back up at her brother and asked, "Can you make it two months?"

Jake smirked to himself and said, "Fine. I'll do what you say for two months,_ if_ you can make it up here by sun set."

Luna was feeling nervous about this, but it was too tempting to pass up. "You have a deal!"

Jake chuckled to himself_,_ and looked over the edge to watch Luna begin her first attempt. She took a few steps back, just as Jake had a moment before. Then, taking a running start first, Luna hopped on to the boulder, stopped a second to gain her footing, then jumped at the wall, and her paws hit the cliff-side. Before she had the time to think about pushing off, she hit the wall and fell to the ground_. _"Ow..." she said in a small voice.

Jake winced when his sister hit the wall, thinking, _I bet that hurt. She'll give up eventually, though. I just have to wait until she does. I hope she gives up before she gets too hurt.

* * *

_

Meryl and Vince were walking beside each other, heading home after an exhausting day of fun with a new friend. Meryl could tell something was up with her brother. She knew there was because he was looking at the ground and being silent. She finally spoke up. "Okay, Vince, what's up with you?"

Vince looked up at her and asked, "What do you mean? I'm fine."

"You haven't said anything since we—" A smile formed on Meryl's face when she realized something, and she stopped in her tracks. Vince continued walking, going past his sister. "Oh... I get it now." Vince stopped in his tracks, wondering what she just realized. He turned around and looked at his sister. "Get what?"

"You _like_ her," she said. "Don't you?"

Vince turned back around and continued walking, going past his sister. He acted as if he was angry as he said, "No I don't."

Meryl ran and stopped in front of her brother. "Oh come on, bro, it's written all over your face. You're in love." Vince grumbled something as he walked past his sister once more. Meryl added, "Just admit it and I'll leave you alone."

Vince stayed silent, but felt a growl starting to rise in his throat.

"You're not denying it, so I guess it's true."

"I'm not saying I am either, so uh... yea. Take that."

Meryl stood in silence, looking at her brother with an expression that said 'really?' Then she finally said, "You're definitely not an Omega."

* * *

After giving Rose a proper burial and a moment of silence for her peace, Humphrey, Kate, Dawn, and Seth started on their way back to the den for some rest. Jack decided to stay at the burial site for a while before returning home. Kate took her spot at Humphrey's side. As did Dawn next to Seth. Seth felt that it would be better to try and start a conversation about something other than Rose's passing. So he looked over to Humphrey and spoke up. "So... Three kids huh?"

"Yeah. You never expected your little brother to have pups before you, did you?"

"Actually, no," Seth said. "I didn't expect it. We've been thinking of having pups, actually. But tell us about yourselves. What was it like to raise them?"

"At first it was tiring and they were quite a handful," Humphrey said. "The times we got to rest were when Garth and Lilly brought their pups over to play."

"Wait, let's back this up a minute," Kate said. She looked to Seth and asked, "Did you just say you were thinking of having pups?" Seth nodded, smiling. Humphrey hadn't even caught on to that, he was glad that Kate did, or else he would have never known. Seth wasn't saying anything about who he was with, so Kate asked. "So... Who's the lucky girl? I'd like to meet her."

"You already know her," Seth said, smiling. He slowed down a little, allowing Dawn to come in to Kate's and Humphrey's view. The two of them stopped in their tracks, surprised when the realization hit them. Dawn and Seth stopped and turned to face them. Humphrey looked at Dawn and spoke up. "You, and Seth? What—How— When did that happen?"

"About two weeks after we last saw you," Seth answered.

"We were playing tag one day," Dawn explained. "When I tackled him to make him 'it', we ended up locked in each other's eyes, then we just... clicked." Dawn turned her head to look at Seth, and caught herself looking in his blue eyes. She smiled, and he did the same.

"Then," Seth said, "we got married seven months afterwards with my love for her growing more and more with each passing second."

Dawn rubbed the top of her head under Seth's chin, making his tail swing left and right. She took notice of the wagging tail and giggled. "I remember when you proposed to me, Seth... You're tail wouldn't quit moving after I said yes."

"Hey, you know I couldn't help it; I was too excited to keep it still, even though I tried my best to make it stop."

Kate and Humphrey couldn't help but smile at the two in front of them, and the story that was being told. Dawn and Seth had been together for seven months before getting married. Lucky number seven. "So..." Humphrey said. "What did mom and dad say when you told them of your newly-found love? Surely they were surprised, weren't they?"

"Well, dad was surprised," Dawn said. "Mom said that she saw this coming ever since Seth brought me to them."

"And dad..." Seth said, chuckling. "Dad said the same thing you did, Humphrey."

"That figures," Humphrey said. Kate, Seth, and Dawn looked at him, confused. He continued, "I am his son, after all, so it kind of figures that we'd say the same thing, if not something similar."

"That's what I was just thinking," Seth said.

The four shared an awkward moment of silence. Humphrey spoke up. "Awkward silences are not enjoyable..."


	21. Chapter Twenty

**_The New Generation: Alex Trey Stella_**

**_Chapter Twenty_**

Jake, wondering how many more attempts Luna would make to get up to him, was starting to get worried for his younger sister. She had failed more than ten times, falling hard on the ground with each failed attempt. He spoke down to Luna, "You know, instead of going through all of this trouble, you could just give up!"

Luna, sliding to the ground, raised her head and blew the fur away from her eye again. "I'm not going to let that happen, Jake! I may not be an Alpha, but I know what you've learned in that school. '_Never give up_,' and '_Do your best,_' right?"

That's what he was worried about. His sister was right about that. Those were the very first things the Alphas had learned in Alpha school. They had learned it first so it would keep them going through the rest of their lessons throughout the Winter. Back then, he often wondered why they taught Alpha school in the Winter, but now that he was older, he understood why. It was to toughen them up. Sure the lessons didn't last long because of the snow getting some wolves ill, but it toughened them up to be in the snow. If there was ever a possibility that they had to hunt in the cold, they would know how.

Jake turned his attention back to Luna as she began another attempt. Taking a running start, Luna jumped onto the rock and took a second leap towards the wall of the cliff-side. Making a three-sixty with her body, she pushed off and successfully grabbed the tree branch with her jaws. Jake stood up, surprised that she finally made it that far. Luna swung herself forward, letting go when she was going back towards the wall. Going to the cliff-side, she looked up and saw her next target, the lower branch sticking out of the cliff's wall. When Luna's paws hit the rock of the wall, she pushed down to propel herself up. With that push, Luna reached for the branch with her jaws, snapping them shut when she got as close as she could. Missing it, Luna fell to the ground.

Jake winced, feeling the pain himself from Luna's fall when he heard the loud _thud_ below him. _I wish she would just give up, I really don't want her to get hurt any more than she already is. If she breaks a leg, or snaps her neck, I'm going to be held responsible for not stopping her. _With that thought in his head, Jake made his decision. Jumping from the cliff's edge, Jake opened his jaws and grabbed the tree's branch on his way down to slow his fall. Then he let go and dropped to the ground, bending his legs to absorb the shock. He went over to his sister and said, "The deal is off, Luna."

This confused her, and she tilted her head. "Why? I'm so close to making it."

"Because, Luna... If you got hurt, I would be held responsible for not stopping you. Do you know how badly I would feel for letting my little sister injure herself like this?"

Luna thought about that for a second before smiling at the kindness her brother was providing for her. It was nice to have someone care about you. Jake turned in the direction there den was at, and nodded for Luna to follow as he started walking. Luna went up to his side, glad to have a caring brother. "You're going to make a lucky girl a great husband someday, Jake. I just know it."

"Oh— I— Uh..." Jake gave a nervous laugh. "Yeah, I guess so. I haven't thought about it much." He wondered why his sister brought up the subject, but quickly realized it was because he had just shown her the kind and caring side of him. The side of him that isn't usually shown as much as the brave and proud Alpha wolf that he is, taking after his father in not only looks, but personality as well. Jake decided to change the subject. "Hey, do you want to watch the Alphas hunt later? Maybe you can check out some of their techniques and maybe try it yourself someday, if an Alpha or Beta can't make it."

"Sure," Luna said. "It sounds like fun." Then her head snapped up when she remembered something. "That reminds me!" She looked to Jake and asked, "Where do you think Alex, Trey and Stella are? You think they're all safe?"

"I wish I knew," Jake sighed. "Wherever they are, though, I just hope that they're okay and will be back as soon as possible. Dad told me that if they aren't back tomorrow, he and mom are sending Alpha search parties to nearby packs. And I bet they're safe. Trey and Stella are both Alphas. They can handle anything that comes at them."

Luna looked to the ground, thinking about her three missing cousins. What happened to them? Were they okay? She could only continue living life as usual and pray that her cousins would get home safe and sound, just as Aunt Kate and Uncle Humphrey did when they were taken out of Jasper. Hopefully they would be back tomorrow. She didn't want to have to give the pack more work to do than what they already had by sending them to other packs.

* * *

"This is awesome!" Alex yelled out of excitement as he jumped from the cliff. If he hadn't been in mid-air, he would probably be able to tell if his tail was wagging out of excitement. The thrill of cliff-jumping satisfied him. After so long of being on the ground it was nice to be in mid-air, with the wind rushing through his fur. As he hit the water pond that was waiting below, the water formed a huge wave of water. Trey, Serah, Jet, Korosu and the others stepped back so they stood back so they wouldn't get hit. Stella, however, didn't even pay enough attention to hear Jet he Jet told her she was in the splash zone.

Then Stella was hit by the splash caused by her brother's fall. She may have had a smile on her face before, but it was quickly replaced with a look of annoyance. Alex came out of the water, laughing as he paddled his way to shore. He shook the water off his fur and came face-to-face with his sister. His laughter stopped when he saw his sister. Stella said, "You know I hate being wet, Alex. You did that on purpose!"

Jet rolled his eyes for the fact that he said she was too close. He smiled at Alex's response. "It's not my fault that you decided to be so close. At least the others were smart enough to—" He stopped when he heard growling. At first it seemed to be coming from Stella, but it sounded as if it came from a distance. The two looked over at Trey, Serah, Jet, Korosu and his group to see them looking around for the now multiple growls.

"Do you wolves know that you're trespassing?"

Once they heard the voice, they turned to see who said it. They were startled when they saw the large group of wolves standing together. There were eight in total, walking towards them. The one in the very front had grey fur on their back, with a white underbelly and blue eyes. Two wolves walked at either side of the leader. The one on the leader's left side had red fur covering their body, and the other had black fur. Almost all of them looked angry, except for a few that were hiding in the back the seemed to consist of a few girls. And, judging from the confidence most of the group had, they were most likely all Alphas or Betas.

The same voice asked again in a more stern voice. "Do you know that you are trespassing?" The voice was that of a female's; coming from the one at the front, who was leading the group of eight.

Stella went back to the group and stood next to Trey as Alex walked toward the strangers, smiling. Hearing Trey clear his throat to get Alex back to them, Alex said to the others, "I've got this, guys. Don't worry." Stella looked around Serah, then Jet, and then at the others, wondering if they were thinking the same thing that she was. Alex walked up to the girl and the two wolves at her side growled when Alex put his arm around the girl as he said, "I doubt you're really as mean as you make yourself seem. Being such a beautiful girl and all, I bet that you're really a kind, caring—"

Before Alex was able to finish, the girl shrugged his leg off of her before quickly pushing him onto his back and pinning him down. Stella was about to go help him, but Trey held her back by the tail. The girl that had Alex pinned said. "That's nice of you to say, but I clearly remember asking a question. And I would like to hear an answer."

Alex's eyes were wide at how fast he ended up on his back, with her pinning him down. He quickly answered her question so as not to get murdered. "No, we didn't know there was territory here, so we didn't know we were trespassing. We just got here."

The girl glared at Alex for a second before speaking. "I don't know if it's because of the kindness in my heart, or just because of the comment you gave me, but I'm deciding to trust you." She got off of Alex, letting him get back up to his feet. The other wolves that were with the girl looked at her confused. She added, "You have until nightfall to leave. If you all are still here after nightfall, though, we're killing you and replacing our caribou with you as our dinner."

Everybody stayed quiet for a while, surprised by the statement from such an innocent-looking girl. Stella explained, "Well, we were actually waiting for night before leaving. You see, we sort of got taken from home, and we're trying to get back. But we need the stars as a map to know which direction to go."

The girl responded, "Very well. Then you have until sunrise."

"You wouldn't happen to have a place we could stay for the day, would you?" Alex asked.

Stella suddenly grabbed Alex's tail and pulled him back as quick as she could, making him almost yelp at the instant pain, and she spoke through gritted teeth so the strangers couldn't read her lips. "I don't know about you, but the rest of us would prefer to _not_ get murdered."

"And I would prefer to _not_ be bored all day," Alex retorted. He turned back to the pack and said, "So what do you say?"

She gave Alex a glare and thought about it for a second before coming up with what to say. Her glare dissipated and she said, "As much as I want to keep strangers _out _of our territory... I suppose we could let you stay for the night. You can hunt if you'd like, we've already caught enough food for the pack today and I'm sure they're back at the hunting grounds by now."

Alex's stomach rumbled at the mention of food. He, Stella, and Trey hadn't eaten since before the Moonlight Howl the night before. "Sounds good to me." He looked at his siblings and said, "You two up for some hunting? I'm starving, and you already know that I'm no hunter."

The girl and the other wolves turned around and started walking away, most likely toward the territory. The red wolf at the leader's side whispered, "What are you thinking, Angel? We can't let these strangers in our territory."

She glared at the red male and replied, "First of all, don't call me Angel. My name is Angie now. Second, I'll keep an eye on them. They won't hurt anyone. If they get too near to someone, I'll come up to them and start a conversation that will eventually lead them away."

Alex jogged after them, going up to Angie's side, who was now walking in the back of the group. Angie told the others to go ahead without her, and they reluctantly left her behind as Alex came up to her side. Going to her side, Alex said, "Hey, thanks for letting us stay for the day."

"Yea, whatever. I don't know why I'm allowing you to stay though." Alex could hear his siblings and the others start following them, reluctant to walk too close. Then Angie stopped, to which Alex stopped as well. The rest of the Alphas from the pack continued walking, letting Angie stay behind. Angie looked at Alex and said, "Just remember one thing, _kid_: If you or your friends do _anything _against pack law, even by accident, you're all dead. Got it?"

"Okay, okay," Alex replied. "I've got it. I would never break a pack's law."

"So, what you said about me being beautiful..." Angie said, changing the subject. "Did you mean it?" Alex, surprised at the question, looked away, hoping to avoid eye contact with her. He was stammering for the right words to say. Then, when he was about to speak, Angie stopped him by putting her paw on his right shoulder. "Never mind. The look on your face says it all, kid. I can tell that you meant what you said."

With that, she continued walking, leaving Alex where he was, looking at the shoulder Angie had just touched. He wondered why his heart skipped a beat at the touch, then looked from his shoulder over to Angie. He went up to her side, walking next to her. He said, "Hey, uh... Can you please stop calling me 'kid'? My name is Alex."

"Right. Well, thanks for the information, but I'd rather _not_ learn your names. It might make me your friend, and I definitely do _not_ want to make friends with you guys if you're leaving. I've been disappointed before, by being too attached to someone. I don't want to go through that again."

"Oh..." Alex said, looking at the ground. He understood what she meant. But there was still one thing he needed to know, at least for the time being. He looked back at her and asked, "Well, can I at least know what your name is?" She told him her name was Angie, then Alex decided to test it out when he spoke again. "Well, Angie, I guess you're right. I'd hate to have a new friend for a day and never see them again. But still, you can't pass up a friendship. Even if it is just for a day, a friend is nice to have."

Angie thought about this for a moment, looking at the dirt beneath her paws. Her paws leaving their prints in the Earth under her weight. Even though she still felt the pain from the last time she lost a friend, Angie knew that Alex was right. She said, "Yea, I guess you're right."

"So... How about we spend the day together?" Alex suggested.

Angie said, "What'd you have in mind, kid?" Alex made her a playful glare to which she smiled. "Oh, right. No calling you kid. Got it. So, what kind of fun did you have in mind?"


	22. Chapter Twenty One

**_The New Generation: Alex Trey Stella_**

**_Chapter Twenty-One_**

Alex climbed in to a log and sat down, moving back to make room for Angie. He looked at Angie and saw the confused look on her face. "Just sit in front of me," Alex said. "It'll be fun. Trust me, you'll love it."

Angie looked behind her at the others. Jet was reluctantly climbing in in front of Stella, as Serah was doing with Trey. Each pair had their own log. Angie, Jet, and Serah were the only confused ones. After seeing Serah and Jet climbing in, Angie rolled her eyes and climbed in front of Alex. Alex was holding his paws on the ground to keep them from moving as she climbed in. Alex started the count-down as soon as she was in. "Three..."

Angie looked around, wondering why Alex just said that. Then she looked at Trey when he said, "Two..."

Jet and Serah looked at each other and shrugged. They looked to Angie and she mouthed the words _What's going on?_ Jet and Serah mouthed back, _Don't know._

Stella said, "One..."

Alex whispered to Angie, "Hold on tight, pack leader. This _will _get bumpy." Angie gulped and quickly grabbed the sides of the log. Alex, Trey, and Stella all put their paws to the ground at the side of the logs. Angie looked at the others to see Jet's paws holding on to the log as tightly as possible. Serah was holding on just as tight. Trey whispered something to her that Angie didn't hear, and it seemed to calm Serah down a bit. She loosened her grip a little bit.

Angie looked at her paws and loosened them a bit just before Alex, Trey, and Stella all yelled at the same time. "Let's go!"

Angie closed her eyes, not knowing what to expect. The three pushed off at the same time, sending each of the logs down the hill. Angie felt her paws automatically tightened on the log when she suddenly felt a little colder. She peeked one eye open to see trees and rocks racing past her as well as feel the wind rushing through her fur. When she saw what was happening, she opened both eye completely to take it in. Then she heard Alex. He yelled over the sound of the rushing wind, "Just lean your body in the direction I tell you, _when_ I tell you!"

Angie nodded as they sped down the hill. The trees were rushing past her so fast it looked like a bunch of green and brown blurs. She was amazed at the speed they were going, even though it was just a log going down a hill. She leaned back so Alex could hear her. "So, you came up with this?"

"No, our father and his friends actually made it up. This is just a little twist on it. We've—Whoa, lean left!" They both leaned in that direction, dodging around a tree before Alex continued. "We've just made it a race, to make it more of a competent way to have fun." Alex stole a quick glance behind him to see Stella and Jet speeding up behind them. He smiled when he saw how terrified Jet looked.

"Right!" Both Trey and Serah leaned right just in time to dodge a boulder, Serah leaving a scream at how close they had just been to crashing. She looked back at the rock for a second, looked back in front of her, and laughed at her own fright. Trey couldn't help but join her. It was true, laughter can be contagious. Serah yelled behind her to Trey, "This is amazing!"

"It will get even better when you're good enough to pull of tricks."

Serah saw a tree coming up ahead and leaned left upon instinct, and when they dodged around the tree, she knew Trey had leaned with her. This surprised Trey; they didn't even have to talk to know which way the other would go. It happened again when they leaned right around a tree stump. Trey looked behind him to see the stump running away behind them. He looked back to Serah and said, "You're pretty good!"

She smiled at the statement as they continued speeding down the hill with the wind rushing past them. Stella and Jet were in front of them. Stella looked behind her to see Trey and Serah not too far behind. Alex and Angie were ahead, first place. She told Jet to lean back before she did so. He followed suit, and with less wind resistance, the two picked up a bit of speed. She spoke to Jet. "How are you holding up? Doing okay?"

"Well, considering how much fun this is, I'd have to say I'm doing rather well. How about you?"

"Eh, can't complain."

Stella and Jet both leaned right as quickly as they could when they noticed a tree not too far from them. They dodged around the tree, missing it by mere inches. Stella looked back at the tree, her heart pounding from the near death. She was surprised that they had even dodged it. Jet got her attention and she turned back to hear him say, "Let's try to avoid close calls like that, okay? It scared me half to death."

Stella giggled and said, "No worries there, Jet."

Angie could feel the hill start getting flatter. The two continued sliding down, gradually losing their speed with each passing second. Once the log finally came to a complete stop, Angie stood up and let out a sigh of relief, putting her paw to her head. Alex asked her, "You okay?"

"Yea, don't worry," Angie responded. "Just a little headache."

"Yea," Alex said. "That happened to me on my first run. My father told me that it's caused from the sudden change of speed at the top of the hill. The more you do this though, the quicker you get used to it. You will eventually stop getting headaches after a while."

"I'll keep that in mind," Angie said, putting her paw back to the ground.

Stella and Jet got out of their log, finally finishing their slide down. They both went over to Alex and Angie. Alex smiled and said, "Took you long enough. What's your excuse this time, Stella? Stop for a drink of water?"

"Sure, let's go with that one," Stella said. "Come on, Alex. You should give me credit for at least beating Trey."

"Speaking of Trey," Alex said, looking around. "Where's him and Serah?"

As if on cue, Serah and Trey finally came down the hill, skidding to a stop a short distance from the group. Trey got out and gave Serah his paw to help her out because she was feeling a little lightheaded. He told the others, "Sorry we're late. We decided to stop for a drink at the river." Alex and Stella looked at each other and could barely contain their laughter, but they managed to do so. Trey wondered what was so funny and asked, "What? Did I miss something?" He paused for a second, and thought about what he said. "Stella already used that excuse, didn't she?"

"Yea," Alex answered. Angie shook her head, clearing the head-ache a little. It was enough for her focus to return. She looked at Jet, who seemed fine. She said, "You're not feeling light-headed?"

"Oh, of course I am," Jet answered. "But after jumping off a cliff, being a little dizzy like this is almost nothing."

"Speak for yourself..." Serah said. Then she heard a howl. Almost as if somebody was in pain, or maybe somebody was giving the pack a warning. Serah could tell everybody else heard it too because their ears moved as well. Angie looked in one direction, everybody else was looking in every direction, wondering where it was coming from. Angie spoke up. "It's time..."

"Time for what?" Trey asked. Angie didn't even answer before she took off running. Alex, Trey, Stella, Serah, and Jet exchanged glances, determining whether or not they should follow. Alex took off first. They ran for about a minute before the howl came again. This time they could tell it was a female's howl. And from the volume of it, they were getting closer. They still wondered what was going on, but they knew they would find out soon enough. So they would ask questions later, if needed.

They finally followed Angie to a den, dug into the side of a mountain. They heard panting coming from inside. Reluctantly walking inside, the group saw Angie, a grey female wolf, and a white male wolf. The female, who they didn't know, was lying on her side, squeezing the male wolf's paw as she groaned.

He finally noticed Angie and said, "Look Carol, your sister is here." He whispered to Angie, "Please, let her squeeze your paw now, this is killing me."

"No thanks, James. Just looking at how hard she's squeezing your paw is hurting mine." Angie went to the wolf, who James said was Carol, and said to her, "It's okay sis. Just breathe."

"That's what I've _been _doing for the past two minutes! It's not helping at all!"

Alex, Trey, Stella, Serah, and Jet backed away when Carol yelled, their footsteps being heard by Angie. She turned around and walked over to them. "Sorry guys. You can't be in here right now."

"Why? What's wrong?" Alex said, looking over Angie's body when he heard Carol scream. "Is she okay?"

"Yes, she'll be alright. I just don't think she'd like to have strange wolves in here while she's giving birth." She looked back at her sister when she screamed her name. She turned back to the other and politely asked, "Could you please just wait out here?"

"Yea, sure," Stella said. "Just let us know if you need anything, okay?"

"Alright." Angie went back into the den as the others lay down outside. They could hear Angie talking to Carol from outside. "It's okay, sis. Just breathe."

"Wow..." Stella said. "Can you believe it, guys? The one day we're here, and she's having her puppies."

"How many do you think she's having?" Serah asked.

"I don't know. We'll know soon enough, though."

They heard footsteps coming towards them, and they got up to see who it was. Korosu and the other five wolves came running up to them. "What's going on?" Korosu asked. "We heard the howl and thought someone might be in trouble."

"No, it's okay," Stella said. "Angie's sister, Carol, just went into labor."

"Ouch," Korosu said. "Sounds painful."

"How would you know what giving birth feels like?" Serah asked.

"Oh, I don't. I just know how painful it was to get my paw squeezed that hard." Korosu looked down at his paw, remembering the day his only daughter was born. "I feel sorry for the father. He's probably wishing he hadn't let her grab his paw."

They heard James' scream of pain from inside, making Alex wince at how much pain was companied by in the tone of it. One of the black wolves said, "Yep, that's the painful scream of a paw being squeezed. I recognize it anywhere. I sounded the same way when my children were being born."

"I wonder if she'll let us see her pups," Serah said aloud.

"We'll just have to wait and find out," Trey said.

They all laid back down, and started their waiting. They put their heads atop their paws and started waiting. Screams filled with pain, male and female, sounded every few seconds, along with Angie and James trying to calm Carol down, even if it was just for a second. They had waited for a total of about thirty minutes before silence fell. Stella and Serah lifted their heads. Stella nudged Trey, waking him up from a nap he had just fallen into.

His eyes opened up instantly. "I'm up, I'm up. I was just resting my eyes."

"Yea, sure. You took that excuse from dad," Alex said, rolling his eyes.

Korosu said, "I bet his paw is broken by now."

They heard Angie's voice, but couldn't make out the words. Then Carol's voice responded shortly before Angie walked outside. She immediately saw Korosu and his group. "Oh hey, you tell everybody you guys were staying here already?"

"We only told about three wolves before we heard the howl. We ran over as soon as we heard it."

Angie sighed and said, "Well, that should be enough. This pack talks a lot, so the word will spread. I bet the whole pack has heard by now."

"So," Stella said, getting back to the subject. "How's Carol? She doing okay?"

"Oh, right," Angie remembered. "She's doing fine. She saw you all earlier, and wondered who you were. So I told her and James about all of you. Including your names, so you don't have to introduce yourselves. She wants to meet you guys for herself. And let you see her new pups."

Stella's and Serah's tails started wagging almost instantly at the thought of seeing newborns. The rest of the guys didn't care much, but they figured 'why not?' They got up, almost as fast as the two girls did. Following Angie into the den, they walked slowly, hoping not to wake any of the pups if they were sleeping.

They walked into the cave, seeing Carol lying next to five puppies. She looked up from the newborns and smiled at the wolves walking inside. James was next to her, rubbing his paw to ease the pain that was coursing through it. He was still smiling though, proud to be a father. Serah and Stella went up to Carol and laid down. Stella asked, "Painful?"

"_Very_," Carol said a little too quickly. She looked down to her pups and said, "But once it's all over, it's worth it."

"Painful for me as well," James said. "I think your claws punctured my skin..."

Carol rolled her eyes at the exaggeration. Serah asked, "Have you thought of any names?"

"Yea," Carol said. She pointed to each pup lying by her as she introduced them in order of their birth. The first was white-furred like her father. She was named Mina. Another white one was male, and given the name Cooper. The third pup introduced was a mix of grey and white, sort of like Alex, but it was a girl given the name Lexi. The fourth puppy was a girl also, with completely grey fur. She was named Rose. The final one was the second boy, with grey and white fur, named Sam.

"Good thing you have more girls than boys," Stella said. "Maybe they'll keep their brothers out of trouble."

"Yea," Carol chuckled. "We can only hope so." She looked down to her pups to take another look at them. They were so adorable.

Serah stretched her neck to get a closer look at the pups. Noticing only four of them lying by Carol now, she looked around and saw the grey and white girl, Lexi, crawling in a random direction. She was going towards Alex. Everyone stayed silent, watching to see what was going to happen. Alex watched the girl slowly crawling towards him. He just looked at her as she crawled onto his left paw, unable to keep from smiling.

"She's taken a liking to you," Carol said.

Alex looked up and joked, "Well I am pretty cool." He looked back down at Lexi, still crawling around without eye-sight. Angie couldn't stop smiling at how adorable the pups were, and how Alex looked with one. She had no idea it would be this amazing to be an aunt. She watched Alex as he lifted his right paw and carefully ran it over the small bundle of fur. Alex chuckled when Lexi froze for a second at the new feeling she had just experienced. Alex looked at everybody watching him. They all just watched him. He chuckled, "What? You've never seen a guy with a puppy before?"

"Well, I have," Serah said. "But I never thought you I'd see you with one. At least, not anytime soon."

"And what's so surprising about that? I love children," Alex looked back to the puppy as she started to get off of Alex's paw. She slipped and slid to the ground, rolling onto her back. Her legs kept moving like she was still walking. Alex chuckled, remembering how his Aunt Lilly used to do turtle impressions for them and this was one of them. A turtle that fell and couldn't get up. Alex gently rolled Lexi so she could get back to crawling around the cave.

She ended up back next to her mother, and lay down with her brothers and sisters. Perhaps a few minutes of exploring, and falling on your back, was enough for the first day of your life. Angie decided to start a new conversation with her brother-in-law and her sister. She said, "So, you're going to miss out on the Howl tonight?"

"Yea," Carol answered. "But the rest I'm going to get will be worth it after what I just went through." She was exhausted. And who wouldn't be after giving birth to five children? Nobody could really blame her for being pretty tired. "How about you, sis? Are you going?"

"Probably not. You know I hate going without a date."


	23. Chapter Twenty Two

**_The New Generation: Alex Trey Stella_**

**_Chapter Twenty-Two_**

Humphrey and Kate would have been on their way home by this time, but they both agreed that waiting on the train to come through again would take another day at least. They asked Jack, Seth, and Dawn if it was okay for them to stay for the night. No-one seemed to mind. They were actually pleased that they were staying. Why wouldn't they be? Kate sure liked the idea of being able to talk to her old friend. Dawn and Kate sat in the back of the den, talking with each other.

Humphrey, Seth, and Jack sat outside of the den. From where the position of the sun is in the sky, Humphrey could tell that there were about five or six hours left until sunset. He knew, at that point, he and Kate would be lying out here to watch the sunset. He couldn't wait for that moment. The sunset did what Humphrey thought to be impossible; it gave Kate more beauty. The subtle glow from the setting sun on Kate's golden-tan fur...

Distracted by the thought, Humphrey didn't even notice when Seth asked him a question. He saw his brother's paw waving in front of his face. Humphrey snapped out of his mini-daydream and looked at his brother. "Huh? What?"

Jack, lying on Seth's other side, said, "Seth just asked how you feel about being a father."

Humphrey instantly smiled. "Oh, it's amazing! I love it."

Jack looked to the ground and asked, "What about your daughter... Stella. Don't you ever worry about her?"

"Not so much. Specially since she's an Alpha." His father looked upset about something. But what? Humphrey looked at his father then to his brother. He whispered to his brother, "_Something wrong with dad?" _Seth shrugged, not knowing. Humphrey looked back to his father and said, "Are you alright, dad?"

Jack looked up from the ground, and Humphrey noticed a tear in his dad's eye about a second before his father wiped it away. "It's... it's nothing. I just miss them so much..."

Jack got up from his spot and started walking away from the den. He told them, "I'll be back later. I'm going out for a walk."

"Okay," Humphrey and Seth both said together. They watched their father walk away, and disappear from sight into the trees a few moments later. Then the two looked to the ground. Humphrey said, "Where do you think he's going?"

"Maybe he's just going to see mom's grave one more time before going to sleep," Seth said.

"Maybe..." Humphrey and Seth sat in silence for a short moment before going back inside to join their mates. Kate and Dawn were both laughing, but they stopped when they saw Humphrey. He tilted his head and said, "What's so funny?"

"Oh, nothing... Tree-head," Dawn said, teasing her brother-in-law. Kate burst into laughter, unable to contain it.

Humphrey was confused for a moment, then realized what they were talking about. He rolled his eyes and wanted to laugh at the memory as he said, "Oh come on, Kate! That was over two years ago, and it wasn't my fault that the tree was there!"

Seth was confused, being the only one not knowing what everybody was talking about. He looked to Kate and said, "You wouldn't mind telling the story for me, would you?"

"Not at all. Sit down and I'll tell you."

* * *

"Come on, Vince. I'll shut up if you just admit it!"

"There's nothing to admit, Meryl!"

"Yes there is! I can see it in your eyes, you _love _her!"

Meryl had been teasing her brother the whole trip home since they finished their game of hide-and-seek in the dense part of the forest. They were just now arriving back at their family's den in the Eastern side of the Central pack. Vince couldn't take it anymore. He turned around, just outside of their den, and looked at his little sister with anger in his eyes. He almost yelled at his sister, "Will you shut up if I do say it!"

Meryl nodded.

"Fine then. I'll say it, just to shut you up. I... Love..."

Meryl smiled, looking behind her brother. Vince, wondering what his sister was looking at, looked behind him, and saw both his mother and father standing behind him. Vince shut his mouth. His parents were smiling at him. His father said, "Oh, please go on son. What were you going to say?"

"Yes, Vince," Meryl said, enjoying this moment a little more than she really should. She walked over to her parents and stood between them, making Vince stand on his own in front of his whole family. She lay down, crossing her paws and putting her head on her paws with a smug smile of satisfaction. "What were you going to say? Do tell."

"Uhh..." Vince backed up, trying to come up with something on the spot. Curse him for not having quick-thinking ability that his sister had. "I... uh... I... love..." An idea snapped in his head. "I love how tasty the caribou is in the Western territory! Yea, that's it." He mentally applauded himself for that.

His sister was surprised that Vince had actually just lied to their parents for the first time in his life. Meryl wondered though... Were they buying it?

"Uh...huh," their mother said. "Well, it can't be any different than what's here in the East..."

Their father added, "But we all have different tastes."

The two parents both walked back into the cave, getting ready for sleep. Meryl's jaw almost dropped. She couldn't believe what just happened. She turned around to speak to her brother. She spoke softly enough so their parents wouldn't hear. "I'm surprised... You actually lied to mom and dad, for once. I'm impressed. But don't you think for one second that you're going to keep this a secret. Don't worry, I won't tell anybody. But I _will _get you to admit your feelings for her."

With that said, Meryl walked into the den, joining her parents for sleep. Their family always did go to sleep earlier than the rest of the pack. Vince had other plans, though. Turning around, he started walking away from his home, with something in mind. A question that he wanted to ask earlier. But with Meryl around, he couldn't ask it earlier.

* * *

Violet crouched low in the grass with the other two members of her hunting group, watching the lone caribou. They had been patient enough to wait for it to leave the herd. Violet couldn't wait to sink her teeth into the neck. Kristy, the black and white girl to Violet's left side, nudged her. She whispered, "We've got an audience."

Violet followed Kristy's gaze and Looked up at the cliff's edge on her left. She saw her two siblings, Jake and Luna. It seems that they were going to watch their hunt today. Then a third wolf appeared next to them. She looked closer to see who it was. There were no mistaking those eyes. It was Vince. She asked, "Hey, Kris, you don't mind if I take this kill, do you?"

Bailey, a white wolf on Violet's left, wondered why she asked. Violet was the shy one in Alpha school. She didn't seem like the one that would want to take the kill. She looked to her friend and asked her, "Is there a specific reason you want _this_ one?"

"Well... I... just think it... would be good practice for me, don't you? You know, I've only been on one hunt before this. Both of you have been on a few."

Bailey nodded, realizing she was right. But by the tone in Violet's voice, Bailey could tell there was more to it than just that. She looked up at the cliff, and saw Jake, Luna, and Vince... Vince. "Oh, you've got a crush on Vince, don't you?"

Violet blushed under her fur. She couldn't help but try hiding a smile. Her two friends could tell they were right. Kristy whispered, "Alright, Violet. Since this is to impress Vince, I'll let you take this one. I'll sneak around to the other side and scare the caribou this way. You and Bailey get ready." Violet and Bailey both nodded in agreement to the plan. Before leaving on her way, Kristy added, "As you already said, you've only taken one down before, so be careful."

Violet smiled at how caring her friends were. She felt lucky to have them in her hunting group. Not only because they were her friends, but because they had been on more hunts than her, and knew how this was supposed to play out. Violet looked back up to the cliff-side. Her heart was starting to beat a bit faster than before. Not just because of the fact this it was her second hunt, but also because she knew that Vince was watching. He was giving her his support.

Violet liked that thought.

She turned her attention back to the task at hand. She couldn't let herself get distracted by anything, or anyone. Looking back to find Kristy, she saw that Kristy had been waiting for her to pay attention before scaring the caribou their way. Violet was glad that her friend had waited for her. Nodding to show she was ready, Violet watched. Kristy nodded back before crawling a little closer to the grazing caribou. She stopped when the caribou's head lifted up, thinking it heard something. Little did it know that there was a wolf only a few feet away.

"Boo!" Kristy yelled, jumping from the tall grass. The caribou turned around and jolted at top speed. Kristy chased it down to make sure it stayed on course.

Violet prepared herself as the caribou ran in her direction. Bailey had her paw on her friend's back. Violet knew why. As the caribou got closer, Bailey said, "Good luck."

Bailey patted Violet's back, letting her know it was time to make the strike. Violet leaped from the grass and immediately grabbed on to the caribou's neck. The force of the caribou's running caused Violet to swing around to rest on its back. She wanted to laugh at herself for actually riding a caribou like this, but she knew what had to be done first. Adding pressure to the neck, Violet could already taste blood seeping through her teeth. She loved the taste, and bit down harder, adjusting her hold on the caribou. It was starting to slow down, finally. Keeping her hold on the neck, Violet waited patiently until the caribou finally fell, going limp.

Violet stood over the caribou, and turned around to see Kristy and Bailey jogging toward her, both giving her congratulations. Kristy said, "Nice job, Violet!"

"Way to go! Not only did you take it down, but you made it look fun by hitching a ride on its back!" Bailey knew she was going to have to try that sometime.

Violet couldn't help at smile at how she was feeling by this point. But she couldn't help but think of only one thing. What did Vince think? She looked up at the cliff-side to see that Jake, Luna, and Vince were gone.

Then she felt a tap on her back. Turning around, Violet came face-to-face with Vince. Jake and Luna were approaching. Vince smiled and said, "Nice work, Violet. Couldn't have done it any better myself."

She smiled and joked, "Yea well you know... Girl power. It's never failed me before."

Vince chuckled at this and offered to help carry it back to the pack. Kristy and Bailey said, "We've got it." Kristy added, "You go on ahead, we'll catch up."

"You sure?" Violet asked.

When Vince turned to glance at Jake and Luna as they came up behind him, Kristy subtly winked at her and said, "Go on."

Violet got the hint and smiled before nodding and leaving. She walked at Vince's side. Jake went over to the caribou and said, "I'll help you out."

"Oh, you don't have to," Kristy said. "We've—"

"I want to," Jake said, taking part of the caribou in his jaws. He was going to help, no matter what they said. Kristy and Bailey glanced at each other, shrugged and bit into the caribou. Luna decided to help as well, feeling like she would be left out if she just walked with nothing. All four of them lifted and started after Violet and Vince.

Vince said, "So, I was thinking... The Moonlight Howl is tonight." Violet thought her heart skipped a beat. She knew what was coming. "I was just wondering... Would you want to go with me?"

Violet had to force herself to wait a moment before responding. She screamed on the inside, but on the outside, she played it cool. "The Moonlight Howl, with you..." Violet pretended to put thought into it before answering, just to torture Vince. She didn't know why she felt the need to do that, but she did.

"If you don't want to, that's fine. I just—"

"Sure."

"—wondered if you... Wait, what?" Vince almost didn't notice that Violet had answered. That's how quickly she said it.

Violet smiled and repeated, "Sure. It sounds fun."

Vince was pleased with himself, glad that he actually asked. And glad that she said yes. "O-okay then. It's a date." Violet's heart jumped at the word. "I'll... see you tonight, then?"

Violet nodded. "I'll be waiting at the bottom for you."

She saw Vince's smile before watching him start on his way home. Then Violet slowed down her pace to go back to the others. Kristy and Bailey looked at Violet once she had a piece of caribou in her jaws. They just stared at her, waiting for a sign as to what happened. What did Violet do? She just winked. They winked back as if to say, "Nice job, girl!" Then they continued their way home.


	24. Chapter Twenty Three

**_The New Generation: Alex Trey Stella_**

**_Chapter Twenty-Three_**

Ever since Garth had woken up from his unconscious state, caused by his brother, he had been sitting outside the den, looking out at the territory. Lilly was starting to worry about him. Was he okay? She got up from where she was laying, and walked over to her mate. She sat next to him and looked out at the territory with him. With a soft and kind tone in her voice, which was normal for her, she said, "Bunny for your thoughts."

Garth stayed silent. But Lilly knew what he was thinking about anyways. He was feeling depressed. Because of her Kate's children. She told him, "If they're not back by morning, we'll send out search parties to the other packs. Okay?"

Garth nodded in agreement. "I'm just afraid that they're gone for good..." He looked to Lilly and said, "If they really are gone, how do we break the news to Kate and Humphrey when they get back?"

"They'll come back, Garth," Lilly said. "You're not having enough faith in them."

He sighed, hoping that his mate was right. He had to have faith in the three of them. Trey and Stella were two of the best Alphas he and Kate had trained in Alpha-School. Certainly, they would be perfectly fine out there on their own. But what worried Garth was the fact that Korosu had them. What could he have done with them? Was Korosu a sick enough wolf to kill them? Considering he tried to kill Garth, he might be.

Garth shook his head, getting rid of the thoughts of the three lying in a ditch somewhere. He couldn't stand to have those thoughts in his mind. Not just about them, but about anybody. He looked back outside, hoping to find something to change his mind. He was in luck. Violet, Jake, Luna, and two other Alphas, who he recognized as Bailey and Kristy, were back from the hunting grounds. And with a successful kill, by the looks of it. He stood up, wincing at the pain in his side. He felt as if his ribs were most likely bruised. Garth turned and started his way down to greet the group, and congratulate them on their hunt.

* * *

_I can't believe I have my first date tonight..._ Violet thought to herself. If she didn't have a dead caribou neck in her jaws, her smile would be showing much easier. A vision of her and Vince at the Moonlight Howl came to her mind, but was quickly taken from her when Kristy tapped on her shoulder. Looking at Kristy, she saw her friend look from her to the direction they were walking. Violet looked to see her parents coming toward them.

She prayed that her mother didn't tell Garth about her sleeping at Vince's den the night before. How would he react to that? Violet didn't know why she was so afraid of that thought. Even if Garth did know about it, he would also know the reason why she had to stay with them. He wouldn't mind it, would he? She knows her father wouldn't want her in the rain. He probably would've done the same thing Vince and Meryl had.

As the hunting group neared Garth and Lilly, the rest of the pack also approached, ready to grab a piece. "Dibs on the leg," someone whispered. Jake almost chuckled when he heard it. He, Kristy, Bailey, Luna, and Violet dropped the caribou, allowing the pack to have their feast.

Kristy and Bailey stayed next to the caribou, trying to get their own piece. Luna, Jake, and Violet went up to their parents. Garth said, "From the looks of it, the hunt went rather well."

"Yea," Jake said. "Me, Luna, and Vince got to watch. Violet was amazing!"

"Vince?" Garth asked, suddenly interested. He looked to Luna. "Friend of yours?"

"Not mine. Violet's."

"And how do you know him?" He turned to Violet.

Lilly answered, "Him and Meryl brought you home when they found you in the forest. You probably don't remember because you were still unconscious."

Garth asked, "I was unconscious?" Lilly nodded. "I didn't even notice..."

"But," Luna added, "You were definitely conscious when Violet came back after sleeping with him." Violet looked to her sister with a hung-open mouth, and Luna winced. "That... came out wrong."

"You did what, Violet?" Garth asked, his voice raised a little with anger, even though everyone could tell he was trying to keep calm.

Violet immediately backed up a couple steps, lowering her tail a bit. She said, "Dad, it's not like that! We're just friends. I went over there to talk with them, it started raining, and they asked me to stay so I wouldn't be out in the rain!"

Garth turned to Lilly, making sure this wasn't a lie. She nodded. "You know we would've smelled him on her if _that_ happened, Garth."

Violet had never imagined how embarrassed someone could get. She'd had enough embarrassment today to last a year, maybe two years if anything else was said. She wondered how much embarrassment she would go through if they found out about her and Vince's date tonight. Looking behind her, Violet saw a couple wolves still looking over the caribou, looking for a good piece to grab. Two wolves in particular caught her interest. Kristy and Bailey were still there. She faintly heard them giggling to themselves.

They were most likely listening to the conversation.

Garth and Lilly went over to the caribou and got their own small pieces of food, eating it without leaving like most other wolves wouldn't have done. Jake and Luna took small pieces and left. Garth and Lilly took another small piece, eating it as they turned around to leave. Violet went over to the caribou, glared at her friends for giggling at her humiliation, took a piece of caribou, and followed after her family to head back home.

* * *

Alex laughed, "Careful there, Lexi." He helped the little fur-ball get off her back after realizing she was unable to turn herself over. All five puppies were awake now, and it was unbelievable how much they were moving around. Stella knew that puppies didn't usually move around much until they could see and hear. She knew they were going to be quite a handful for Carol, James, and Angie when they had to leave.

James left to get a drink, being followed by Korosu and the five black wolves. Stella lay between her brothers, softly running her paw over the white-furred girl, Mina. She was lying still, either afraid of the touch, or enjoying the petting. Alex and Jet were watching after Lexi and Cooper. Trey and Serah were a little off to the side. Trey was watching Rose and Serah had Sam. Carol didn't mind that they were all playing with _her_ puppies. She was going to have plenty of time to them when they got hungry again.

Serah couldn't help but smile as she watched Trey with Sam. _Tonight. I'll tell him tonight..._

Stella looked to Angie and Carol. "So... Are _both_ of you pack leaders?"

"Yea," Carol said. "Angie is single-handedly leading the other side of the pack, and I have James helping me with this side."

"Well... What happened then? I mean," Alex asked. "Aren't you a little young to be leading the pack, Angie?"

"Yea..." Angie turned her head, trying to hide what was coming to her eyes. She stood up and practically ran outside, but not before Alex saw the lone tear dropping from her eye. Alex jumped to his paws, but stopped himself from running after her. Stella, Jet, Trey, and Serah exchanged glances with one another, wondering what just happened.

Alex turned to Carol. "Did I say something wrong?"

"No. It's just... Our parents died not too long ago, and we're still grieving," Carol said, tears coming to her as well.

Alex started walking outside, looking for Angie. There was no need to follow her scent. He could see Angie in the trees of the forest. Alex made sure he didn't run into anybody on his way towards her. Walking slowly, Alex approached her from behind, going to her side and trying to look her in the eye. She was looking at the ground, allowing the tears to fall. "You okay?" Alex asked.

Angie jumped at the sound of Alex's voice. She hadn't noticed him come up to her. Quickly wiping the tears from her eyes, she turned her face away from him and, in a weak voice, said, "Yea. I'm— I'm fine."

Alex walked to stand in front of her. When Angie looked up, Alex pulled her into a hug of comfort with his right paw. "Carol told us what happened... I'm so sorry, Angie."

Angie put her right paw on Alex's back, accepting the hug. She felt Alex put his neck against hers, making her heart beat faster at the contact. "Thank you, Alex." She pulled away, bringing her paw back down to the ground. Wiping away the tears, she smiled. "I needed that."

Alex smiled back at her and said, "I could've told you that. Hugs work for everything."

"There's something I want to ask you, Alex," Angie said. He looked at her, wondering what there was to ask of him. "I usually don't invite wolves from outside our pack, but you've all proven to be trustworthy enough. How would you and the others feel about coming to our Moonlight Howl tonight before you leave for Jasper?"

Alex thought the question over for a second before answering. "I'd love to. I'm just not sure about the others."

"I'm sure they'll want to stay for it, once they see where it takes place."

Angie turned and started heading back towards the den. Alex jogged up to her side and slowed when he got to her side. "How would seeing the location affect whether or not they'd want to stay?"

"Oh, you'll understand when you see it. It's amazing."


	25. Chapter Twenty Four

**_The New Generation: Alex Trey Stella_**

**_Chapter Twenty-Four_**

Violet and the rest of her family walked back into Kate and Humphrey's den. The family agreed on staying there until at least Kate and Humphrey returned. Garth took his spot just outside the den, Lilly sitting at his side to start a conversation. Violet, Jake, and Luna could hear what they were saying as the three lay down inside. They were talking about their cousins.

"Garth, they're going to be fine."

"The longer they're gone," Garth said, "the more worried i'm go to get until they're back."

"So, what were you and Vince talking about?" Violet looked to her brother, Jake, who had asked the question. He was smiling, his head on his paws which were crossed. Violet stared at him, wondering what he meant. Jake said, "You and Vince were talking a while ago."

"Oh," Violet suddenly got nervous. She knew she'd have to talk about it some time; just not so soon. She decided to be honest. "We just talked about the Moonlight Howl."

"What about it? I'm sure he wouldn't have asked _you_ to go with him." Violet looked hurt. Jake added, "He's the coolest Alpha in the East." Violet smiled, knowing Jake had just dissed not only her, but also himself. Jake lifted his head when noticed what he did, but not before Luna started chuckling at him.

"Wow, Jake. It seems like you no longer need us two make a fool of yourself," Violet teased. Jake put his head back down, turning to look away from them. He was either embarrassed of angry of what had just happened. Violet proceeded to lay her own head down, resting up for the date she was soon going to have with Vince. She couldn't wait to be at the Howling Rock. It didn't matter to her whether she and Vince howled or not, she just wanted to be there _with_ him. Closing her eyes, she smiled at the thought.

* * *

"So... You start your Moonlight Howl before night-fall so you can enjoy it longer?" Alex asked, trying to locate the sun's position in the sky to see what time of the day it was.

"Yeah," Angie said. "And you'll see why when we get there and start the party."

"Well, when are we getting there? I can't wait!" Alex was obviously excited, showing his excitement by jumping while he walked.

"Wow," Angie chuckled. "You're an impatient pup aren't you?"

"Impatient, yes. Pup, no. I just want to see what's so amazing about this place."

"Well, we're almost there."

Stella nudged her brother in the side. When Alex looked over at her, Stella just smiled, like she knew something that he didn't. Confused, Alex just stared at her a moment before ignoring her and looking away. Stella backed up to walk on Serah's right side. Korosu and the rest of the black wolves walked in the back so they could keep an eye on everyone in front of them. Trey was walking with Alex, and started a conversation with him after Stella moved back. Jet moved up to Stella's other side to listen to their conversation.

Stella nudged Serah's side to get her attention. Before Serah could say anything, Stella asked, "How are things going with Trey?"

When Jet understood where the conversation was going, he moved up to join the guys, who were probably talking about something cooler. Serah sighed and answered Stella's question. "Relatively well. I'm just glad he's still alive."

"Yea, I was almost sure he was gone..." Stella said. "But what I keep thinking about is this." She lowered her voice to a whisper and continued. "Everybody but Trey knows that you love him."

"Stella...—"

"Come on, Serah, you gotta do something about it. Look, I bet he likes you the same way. But you'll never know unless you say something."

"You really think so?"

"I _know_ so." Stella said with an assuring smile. "You should just tell him." She nodded towards Trey walking in front of them as she said, "Go for it. He's right there."

Serah nodded with a smile and started her way up towards Trey. She gulped, nervous. All she could do was hope that Trey would feel the same about her, like Stella said. Before she could say something, Angie interrupted her. "Here we are!" Angie yelled. She led the group through a small tunnel, and pushed a curtain of vines out of the way to show everyone the location of the Moonlight Howl. Serah's jaw dropped when she saw everything.

Not only were there flowers of every color and a giant waterfall creating a mini-rainbow at the bottom, but there was also a water-slide made of rock coming out through the water-fall and twisting in a circle to come down into the deep pond. She could tell it was safe to slide down it because there were wolves already going down, laughing at the fun it gave them.

When she turned her head to the right, she saw a rocky landscape that overlooked the horizon out to where the sun was; it was almost sunset. That must be the area they used for the "romantic" howling; it was a safe bet because of the glowing sunrise that would definitely show up. To the left, she found a worn-out path made between the trees, leading somewhere that Serah wanted to see, just because she was curious about what was over there. Maybe it was a separate area for friends and families to howl with each other.

Looking around at the others, Serah saw that everybody, aside from Angie, was as surprised as they could possibly get. This had to be the most beautiful place on Earth, and the wolves of this pack had it every night for their Moonlight Howls. They were so lucky to have this place for themselves.

Stella went up to Angie and sat down beside her. As she continued taking in the scenery, Stella said, "I could just sit here and look at everything all night and be happy..."

"Well, if you like this," Angie said, "then you gotta stay to see it at night."

"You mean, it only gets better?" Alex asked, sitting on Angie's right side and still taking in the beauty of the whole area.

"Yeah," Angie said. Imagining the scenery in her mind, she couldn't wait for everyone to see it.

"Well, then..." Angie said. She raised her voice for the rest of the pack to hear her. "Let's get this party started!"

Wolves cheered, howled with excitement, and even a group of wolves started their turn down the water-slide together. Angie turned to her new friends and said, "Enjoy the party." She pointed at the path Serah was looking at a moment ago and said, "Over that way is the food supply. I know most of you will be over there at least once tonight, so I'll just say this; we were low on caribou today so small portions only, please. And over that way, I'm not sure if you've noticed, but we've got a water-slide. Although, the line can get pretty long, so I'd go and wait right now if you're wanting to have a turn on it tonight. And, the main part of the party, which most of the pack usually ignores until nightfall, are the howling areas. The area for friends and family is over by the food, and for the couples... Over there with an amazing view of the sunset. So, again... Enjoy the party, and have fun."

She started on her way towards the water-slide. Alex didn't really know where to go first, so he joined Angie in the line for the slide. Jet turned to Stella and said, "Is it okay if I stick with you for now?"

Stella smiled and said, "Fine with me, as long as you don't mind water-slides, because I'll probably be over there all night." Jet followed after her as she walked towards the line of wolves, waiting patiently for their turn.

Korosu and the five black wolves split up in different directions, three going towards the food, two towards the slide, and Korosu going to the howling area to watch others howl.

Serah and Trey walked together towards the food. Serah was watching the ground, thinking, and Trey was getting excited about the food. He hadn't eaten in almost two days. He couldn't wait to get something in his stomach. Looking to Serah, he knew something was on her mind. He tried to help her relax by making a joke. "Hope this food won't come out through the gun-shot in my stomach."

Serah smiled to show that she heard what he said. But she couldn't laugh because of what was poking at her mind at the moment. Her heart rate increased. She stopped in her tracks. Trey noticed this and stopped as well, turning around to look at her. He asked, "Is something wrong?"

Serah just nodded, and looked up at Trey. "I just have something to tell you, Trey... But... I don't know how you're going to react when I say it." Trey sat down, showing that Serah had his full attention. Serah appreciated that Trey was giving her his attention, but she was hoping that he would give her more time before she had to say it. She continued. "Trey... I've had this feeling for a while now and... it's about time I told you."

She paused for a moment, and saw that Trey was waiting. "I love you, Trey."

Her heart rate slowed down. She was relaxed, and glad that she finally said it. She watched Trey for his reaction. He just sat there, frozen with surprise. Serah breathed heavily, like the confession took a lot of energy out of her. She felt like saying it again, but she wanted to know what Trey thought first.

"Well..." Trey said. "That was... unexpected." Serah started to get worried that Trey didn't feel the same. She just had the feeling that he didn't. "Well, Serah... I'm... glad you told me that."

"That's it?" Serah said, a little disappointed in the reaction. "That's all you have to say? 'I'm glad you told me'?"

"Don't get me wrong, Serah. It's not that I don't like you, it's just... surprising. I mean, finding out the one you love actually loves you back? That's a lot to take in."

"You... You feel the same way, then?" Serah's smile came back.

Trey smiled and nodded. "I have for some time now. I just never knew how to say it."

Serah smiled and moved closer to Trey. Now that she knew how Trey felt, and it was out in the open between them, she could finally do what she had wanted to do for a while. She licked his grey-furred cheek, more affectionately than she had when he saved her from drowning. The two of them sat where they were, grinning at each other and staring in each other's eyes. Trey's golden-brown eyes locked in Serah's blue ones.

Trey pulled Serah toward him, taking her in a hug and rubbing his neck against hers. Both of their hearts only started beating faster at the contact. How could their heart rate increase faster than they already were? It seemed impossible, but it happened. Serah hoped her heart wouldn't explode with how fast her blood was pumping through her veins.

Trey pulled back enough to look in Serah's eyes again, licked her red-furred cheek, and said, "This Moonlight Howl just turned into a date for the two of us, didn't it?"

Serah could only giggle at the question before she said, "I guess so."

"And I guess that we're going to be at the _couples' _howling area tonight, right?"

"I'd love that. But we don't have to go if you don't want to."

Trey nodded, "That settles it then. I'm going to howl with the most beautiful girl I've ever known, at the most beautiful place I've ever been to."

"Can't wait." Trey was about to turn around and start leading them towards the howling area, until Serah pulled him back, gently. She said, "But right now, let's just get some food. We can't howl on an empty stomach."

"This is very true."

Trey and Serah continued their walk towards the food, walking closer than they had every other time they walked together. No, they weren't just walking closer. Now that Serah finally confessed her love for Trey, her heart rate was finally starting to slow down. Trey said, "I can tell I'm going to have a great dream in my sleep tonight, now that we're together."

"Me too, Trey. Me too..."


	26. Chapter Twenty Five

**_The New Generation: Alex Trey Stella_**

**_Chapter Twenty-Five_**

Jet and Stella finally reached the front of the line for the slide. They were both in a cave, next to a stream where the water flowed out onto the water-slide. With the sun still out, the light was able to come into the cave from where they had entered, so they could still see. The two watched as Alex and Angie slid down together, splashing in the water at the bottom. When the two came back above the surface, they were laughing. Jet turned to Stella. "Ladies first."

"Let's go together," Stella said.

Jet almost stepped backwards with surprise. That was the one thing he hadn't expected her to say. "Really?"

"Sure," Stella said. "Come on."

Stella stepped into the stream, feeling the water go halfway up her legs. It was colder than she had thought. But she wasn't going to back out because of the water temperature. Jet shrugged and stepped in after her, standing by her side. Jet looked back at the wolves waiting patiently behind them before looking back ahead of him. He and Stella walked forward, and let their paws slide out from beneath them when they reached the start of the slide. They had expected the slide to hurt their stomachs because it was made of rock, but it was actually smoother than they had thought. It must have been worn smooth from the water and all the wolves that had been down it.

Stella and Jet held their heads up so as to not get water up their noses. They tried avoiding one another, but were unable to do so. There was a lot more to this slide than they had seen from outside. Most of it was in the darkness of the tunnels inside the mountain. Whenever they were outside, the slide was attached to the outside wall of the mountain, occasionally being forced to make a few turns. They would have fallen off the slide while they were outside if it wasn't for the wall that had been formed. They guessed that the slide had been here for probably centuries and the water was slowly dissolving the rock where it flowed.

After many twists and turns, going in and out of the mountain's tunnels, Jet eventually saw a waterfall coming toward them. Or, they were going towards it. Jet looked to Stella and saw that she had her eyes closed. _Good idea._ Jet closed his eyes so the pressure from the water coming down on him wouldn't hurt his eyes. Then he felt the water hit his back for a second. He expected to be dropped right into the little pool after that, but there was one last section to the slide.

One big turn made almost a complete circle. On that turn, Jet somehow managed to get himself turned around, so he was going to be dropped in the water backwards. He looked to Stella, who was still sliding forward. She laughed at him for being backwards, then looked back ahead of her. She took in a deep breath. Jet did the same. Then the two fell in the water with a big splash, holding as much air in their lungs as they could manage. Jet looked around underwater for Stella, and saw that she was already floating back towards the surface.

Jet kicked himself back up, and broke surface in a matter of seconds. Coming back to the air above him, he let out a gasp for air, and started following Stella towards shore. As he paddled his way towards shore, he looked back up where the wolves in line had been standing, waiting for their turn. They were waiting for Stella and Jet to splash in the water, to make sure they didn't get hit by the wolf behind them. He noticed the next wolf in line stepping into the stream and starting his way down the slide.

Turning his head back to Stella, he saw that she was shivering. He couldn't blame her. That water was freezing, and the wind that was blowing made it even worse. She laughed and said, "I hadn't expected it to be so cold! I wouldn't have waited in line for it if I had known how cold the water was!"

"I know, right?" He laughed, and realized that he was shivering as well.

He shielded his eyes as Stella shook her golden brown fur dry. When she was done, Stella shielded her own eyes as Jet did the same with his brown fur. Sitting down, they both quickly squeezed the water from their tails. Seeing that Stella was still shivering, Jet walked over towards her and pressed his body against hers and putting his paw on her back, bringing her in a hug to share what warmth he had with her. Her eyes grew wide with surprise. She hadn't expected that Jet would do something like that.

But Stella accepted the hug, putting her right paw on Jet's back and putting her head underneath Jet's chin. _Whoa,_ Jet thought to himself. _Didn't expect her to do that._

Then Stella did something Jet expected even less. She pulled her head back and licked Jet on the cheek. It took a moment for Jet to process what just happened. His heart skipped a beat and he was frozen for a second before he looked down to Stella. Their eyes met, and locked on to each other for a moment before their smiles grew larger. After the moment of eye contact, Stella rubbed the top of her head under Jet's chin. He couldn't stop smiling now, but he didn't care. He and Stella both knew how the other felt now.

Then the howling from behind him met his ears. He hadn't even noticed the howling a moment ago. Maybe he just could hear it over the sound of the waterfall? It didn't matter why he hadn't noticed. He heard them now. And it just gave him an idea. Pulling his head back from Stella, he looked her in the eye and asked, "How would you feel about howling with me?"

She was silent for a moment, either thinking about her answer, or surprised from the sudden question. She smiled and answered him. "I'd love to." With that, he and Stella turned and began walking towards the couples. Stella looked towards the sun. It was already setting, and it was going to be dark soon. But she didn't care. What she was thinking about at the moment was her and Jet, ready to join the other wolves with their own melody.

* * *

Angie closed her eyes, turning her head away to avoid getting water in her eyes as Alex shook his head, trying to get out the last bit of water that was in his fur. He and Angie were sitting on a not-so-high cliff, overlooking the two howling areas. Angie had led him up here.

"So," Alex said, using his right paw to scratch behind his right ear. "Do you come up here every time?"

"Sometimes," Angie said. "I just like to come here to think sometimes, and listen to their howling."

"Mm," Alex closed his eyes, concentrating on the beautiful sound of the howls. "It's a nice place to come to."

"Yea... I'm the only one that's ever come up here, that I'm aware of. It's a great spot to be at when it happens."

"When what happens?" Alex asked, curious.

"We call it _Sidera Noctis_. It stands for _The Stars of Night. _It only happens once a week, and you came on the right day of the week." A small yellowish-white light appeared in front of Alex's face, making him wonder what it was. He focused on it, trying to figure out what it was. He looked to Angie. She was smiling. "It's starting."


	27. Chapter Twenty Six

**(Sorry for the long wait. But here's the update!)**

**_The New Generation: Alex Trey Stella  
_****_Chapter Twenty-Six_**

Stella and Jet stopped in mid-howl once they noticed it. A single small glowing orb of yellow light was hovering between them. Stella leaned her head in toward it to get a closer look, and was surprised to see it move. She and Jet followed its movement, watching it fly away. The two glanced at each other, hoping the other knew what it was. They both shrugged and looked back to find that more of the lights were appearing, almost out of nowhere. They were appearing everywhere. Dozens... Soon, hundreds. Maybe almost a thousand, if they bothered to count them all. All the yellow orbs were flowing in a sort of group together, flickering on and off throughout the area.

And it was a beautiful sight.

Jet's heart was beating just as fast as Stella's was. Stella couldn't help but lean her head against Jet's chest and smile at the view in front of them. Jet didn't care how fast his heart was beating. He wanted Stella to know what she was doing do his heart rate. Jet put his chin down on top of her head, smiling as well. _And to think we're watching this... as a couple_, Jet thought. _Stella and Jet... I like the sound of that. _"Beautiful..." Stella said, admiring the glow being cast over them.

"Doesn't compare to what's next to me."

Stella's heart almost skipped a beat. That was the most romantic thing anybody's ever said to her. Well, the _only _romantic thing anyone's ever said to her. Jet was her first boyfriend. _Will mom and dad approve of him?_ Stella wondered. She began to fear the worst. _What if they won't like him?_

* * *

"Why so prettied up tonight, Violet?" Lilly asked.

Violet had never tried this hard to make herself look as absolutely perfect as possible. She usually just had someone comb through her fur with a pine-cone and she would be on her way to the Moonlight Howl. But not tonight. Tonight, Violet had washed up in the river, got Luna to comb her fur as neatly as possible with a pine-cone, and found a beautiful white flower that she placed neatly behind her ear. Violet was about to answer her mother's question when her brother, Jake, answered instead. "She's hoping to get lucky tonight."

Lilly's, Violet's, and Luna's eyes all widened at the statement as they looked at him, lying on the ground with his head on his paws like he was bored. "You know that's not true," Lilly told him. "Your sister isn't like that. Say you're sorry."

"Mom, it was just—" Jake start

"Jake..."

Jake groaned to himself. Why should he have to apologize for making a joke? He lifted his head and looked at his older sister. "I'm sorry, Vi. It was just a joke."

Lilly smiled, glad that her son listened to her. Luna went back to brushing Violet's tail with the pine-cone, making sure to be careful so no fur got ripped out. It had happened before, and she felt bad, even though Violet didn't mind too much. _"It's okay, Luna. It'll grow back," _Violet had told her.

"So, Violet. Is there someone special you're getting so dolled up for tonight?" Lilly asked, glaring at Jake for a second, so he wouldn't make another snide remark, before turning her head to Violet. Violet tried to hide her embarrassment. She was hoping that she would avoid this subject. Sure, Violet wanted her mother and father to know about her and Vince. But not this early. "Well...?" Lilly pressed on.

Violet had to think of something. If she couldn't, then she'd tell her mother. Garth was still asleep in the back of the den, so he wouldn't know just looked to her mother and said, "Well, I never try to look as good as I should. So, I figured I'd just see how it works out tonight."

"Yeah, that's it," Jake muttered.

Lilly turned to her son. "At least your sisters actually _go_ to the Moonlight Howl. You always just stay home."

If there was one thing Jake didn't like, it was going to Moonlight Howls. "I went last night, didn't I?"

"Well, I want you to have more fun than just talk, which is exactly what you did yesterday. Tonight, I want you to go to the Moonlight Howl, and ask a girl to howl with you."

"But, mom—" Jake groaned.

"No buts, Jake. Just do it." He groaned again, laying his head back down. Lilly was starting to get annoyed with him. The only reason Jake had even gone yesterday was because she made him. She was going to do the same thing tonight. Lilly walked up to her son and lifted his head up, looking him in the eyes. She smiled so he wouldn't think she was mad at him. "Just go, Jake."

Jake moved his head out of his mother's paws as he got up on his own paws with a sigh. "Okay..."

"You can thank me later." Lilly walked outside to see if it was time. It was. Wolves were already walking on their way to Howling Rock. She turned back inside just in time for Luna to say that Violet's fur was done. Lilly said, "If you want a good spot to howl with your friends, you should go now. Everyone's on their way there already."

Violet instantly got up and went outside. Not even waiting for her two siblings. By the time Luna and Jake caught up to her, she was half-way to Howling Rock already. "Wow," Luna said. "You sure took off in a hurry."

"Well, I want to save a good spot for me and my friends," Violet lied. She realized how much it easier it was to lie to her siblings than her parents. The truth was, she couldn't wait to find Vince and start howling with him. She was eager for the date.

Jake said, "You girls won't tell on me if I just sit there and talk, will you?"

"Yeah." "We will."

"Great... Well, if I _have _to howl with someone..." Jake looked around him, looking for whichever girl was nearby. The first one he saw was Kristy. She was walking about twenty feet behind him, alone. _Violet's friend? Well, if I gotta howl with someone, might as well be someone I know. At least she isn't bad-looking. _Jake turned around and jogged over to her, leaving Luna and Violet to continue walking towards the howling rock. He smiled as he neared her. "Hey, Kristy."

"Hey, Jake. You're going to the Moonlight Howl _again_?"

"Yeah. Big surprise, I know."

"Yeah, it is, actually." The two walked a few steps in silence before she asked, "Did you need something?"

"I just wanted to know if you wanted to howl with me." It was a statement, but it acted as more of a question. Kristy was silent for a moment, thinking it over. "If you don't want to, then it's cool. I just thought I'd ask."

"It's not that I don't want to, Jake. It's just... a big surprise, y'know? I didn't think you thought of me like that."

He let out a nervous laugh. "Yeah," He muttered the next part under his breath as he turned his head away. "Neither did I..." He looked back to Kristy. "I... understand if you don't want to though."

Kristy smiled nervously. "Actually... I'd love to go with you."

Jake decided to smile back. He had to get through this without her finding out why he _really _asked her to howl. After all, he didn't know if Kristy actually had feelings for him or not. If she did, and thought he actually liked her the same way, she'd be devastated if she ever found out the truth. _Luna and Violet better not tell Kristy the truth... Violet... I wonder if it'll be weird to see her brother and her best friend howling together._

Jake smirked at the thought.


	28. Chapter Twenty Seven

**_The New Generation: Alex Trey Stella  
_****_Chapter Twenty-Seven_**

Alex and Angie were still sitting on the cliff she had shown him. Her "secret" area. It wasn't really a secret to her anymore. Alex was the only other wolf she had known to be up there. She didn't know why she felt it necessary to show him. After all, she'd only met him just today. "Wow..." Alex sighed, looking at the hundreds of yellow lights floating around throughout the area. "What are they?"

Angie laughed, seeing how obvious it was. How could Alex not figure it out? What else could yellow lights be in nature? "They're fireflies, Alex. Can't you tell?"

"D'oh!" Alex hit his paw against his forehead. "Fireflies! Of course..." Angie laughed for a second before turning back to watch the light show the lightning bugs were giving her and her new friend. Alexsat up and looked up at the sky, filled with stars and one bright moon. "It's so beautiful here."

Angie sat up and looked up at the sky with him. "Yeah... But I heard Jasper is even more beautiful. A big mountain, right underneath the moon..." Alex didn't know what he could say to respond to that. So he continued to look at the sky. Angie nudged him in the side and pointed up as she exclaimed, "Shooting star! Time to make a wish."

Alex saw Angie close her eyes. Then he closed his own. He made his wish in his mind. He didn't expect for Angie to say her wish out loud, in a hushed whisper but loud enough for his ears to pick up. Alex looked to her as she said, "I wish that my parents were back home. With me, and Carol..."

Alex could see the tears at the corners of her eyes, near her nose. Hoping it would help comfort her, even a little, Alex put his paw on top of Angie's. She looked down at the contact, then looked up at Alex. He tried to give her a small smile, but it was difficult to smile when he was looking at a very upset girl. He knew that Angie was missing her parents. He had wished the same thing as her, and hoped it would come true. Alex wanted her to be happy again. To see her parents, even for a short minute, if it meant that she got a chance to see them.

Angie threw herself at Alex, putting her forelegs around him in a tight embrace, putting her neck against his as she started sobbing. He froze for a moment, surprised by the sudden hug. Alex wasn't sure of what to do. So he just did what felt right. He put his paw on her, gently rubbing Angie on the back as he let her cry in his shoulder. "I would give my own life in a heart-beat if it meant bringing them back. So at least Carol could see them again. I just wish I could change everything..."

Alex wasn't sure if he should even ask this question. But he wanted to know, so he'd know how Angie was feeling. "I know what you're going through... My grandparents died last year, and—"

"No you don't, Alex," Angie said. "You don't know what I'm going through. Sure, you know how losing a family member feels. But you still don't know how awful _I_ feel about what happened... I wish I could go back. Stop myself from saying what I did." Angie pulled herself back from him, and the fur under her eyes was completely drenched with tears, and there were still more coming. "Alex... You don't know how terrible it is, living with this kind of pain..."

* * *

_(Angie's POV. Flashback)_

_Carol had been pregnant for about two weeks now. I walked at her right side as we walked together through the territory. We were going back and forth, sending jokes at each other. Then she said she was going to go see James. _

_"All right. Have fun. But not _too _much fun, okay?" I joked._

_Carol laughed. "Angie. I'm already pregnant. I don't think I can get in more trouble."_

_"True. Well, I'll see you later, okay?"_

_"All right," she said, starting to walk away. Then she yelled back, "Tell mom and dad I'll be home soon!"_

_"Okay!"_

_I continued my walk towards home, enjoying the nice weather. No clouds. A warm temperature, sure, but the breeze was keeping me cool enough to not complain about it. It was a nice day, and I wanted to be outside to enjoy it. But I was exhausted after the hunt, so I was on my way home for some rest. Life was pretty good, being the daughter of the two pack leaders. Though, I knew that I would have to be just like them some day, leading this side of our united pack. Carol was leading the other side, having united the packs by marrying James. It was a good thing they were actually in love._

_"Hey, Angie!"_

_I turned around to see who it was... and froze. I felt my cheeks begin to heat up. It was Luke, the very wolf I had been crushing on since our time in Alpha school. "L-Luke! I— uh... D-Did you need something?"_

_I wanted to hit myself for the stuttering. But I wasn't going to do that in front of him. "I just wanted to ask you something. Would you... go with me to the Moonlight Howl, tonight?"_

_"Y-you mean... like a date?"_

_"Yeah..."_

_My mind was screaming at me to shout YES YES YES! but there was no way I was going to do that. I had to play it cool. "Sure. I'll have to see if I have anything to do though, but I should be free the rest of the day."_

_"Cool. So... I'll see you tonight?"_

_"See you then."_

_He smiled and turned around. I turned back to continue my way home, my heart beating like crazy and my cheeks burning hot. I ran home, wanting to get some sleep so I wouldn't be tired on my first date. I stopped the run when I neared my den, knowing full well that my parents hated when I ran. They always said it was dangerous and I could hurt myself. I walked inside the den, and saw that my mom and dad were resting. They weren't asleep, just lying down like they wanted to sleep, but couldn't. My mom looked at me as I came inside._

_"Hey there, Angel. Why so happy today?"_

_I hadn't realized it until now. I was smiling. I almost winced at my birth-name that I despised so much. I don't know why I didn't like it. I just... didn't. I may have liked it when I was still a little girl, but now that I'm older... I wanted to be called Angie. But my parents just wouldn't go with it. They wanted to keep the name they gave me. I looked at my mom. Her head raised off the ground as she waited for my answer. "Well... I can't lie. I just got asked out on my first date."_

_My dad raised his head instantly. "What'd you just say?"_

_Here we go... "Uh... I just got asked out. To the Moonlight Howl tonight."_

_"Honey..." My mom said. "I thought we told you that—"_

_I finished for her. "—that I'm too young to go. I know mom, I know. But—"_

_"No buts, Angel," my dad said. I almost growled at my name that time. "We're your parents. We just want what's best for you."_

_"No you don't... You just don't want me to have any fun..."_

_"Yes we do," dad said. "We just want what's best for you__. And__... You're my little girl. I just don't want you getting hurt."_

_"But dad... Luke is—"_

_"Luke?" he raised his voice at the name. "You definitely can't go now, Angel. He's—"_

_"Can you please stop calling me Angel? My name's Angie now."_

_"No it's not," mom said. "We named you Angel, so that's your name."_

_I sighed, fighting back a growl that was about to rise in my throat. Dad continued with what he was saying. "You can't go, dear. And that's that. Specially if it's with Luke."_

_"Oh, and what's wrong with Luke? You don't even know him."_

_"Yes we do," my mom said. "Remember, we didn't just train you and Carol. Luke was one of all the other Alphas we trained. We know him better than you do. He's just trying to get you to sleep with him, dear."_

_"How can you say that?" I barked loudly. "He isn't like that mom!"_

_She cringed at my tone. But what could I do? I was mad at them. Mom looked at my dad. He said, "Angel... Just—"_

_"Stop calling me Angel..." I growled._

_"Just lay down and go to sleep. We'll talk about this later."_

_I almost ran out of there. Run away from home. It seemed like a good idea. But... I couldn't leave my parents, and my sister. I forced myself to lay down, making sure to stay away from my parents, and I fell asleep in no time. _

_Then I woke up later that night. I looked around. My parents were asleep. Carol was back from James' place and was asleep next to mom. I was alone by myself. I looked outside. It was beginning to get dark out. The Moonlight Howl was going to start soon... I looked at my parents, remembering how furious I was with them and why they said I couldn't go with Luke. I quietly got up and left the den, being careful not to wake them up. I was going to the Moonlight Howl with Luke, whether they said it was okay or not. _

_"Where are you going?"_

_I froze, hearing my dad's voice. I turned my head to look at him. He and mom were both awake now. Looking at me. Carol was still asleep, though I could tell she would be awake soon with where this was going. I answered truthfully. "To the Moonlight Howl with Luke."_

_"We said you can't go, Angel," Dad said._

_"Stop calling me Angel..."_

_"You can't go," Mom said. "Stay here."_

_"No."_

_"If you go... We're grounding you for two weeks," Mom warned._

_I growled. "I don't care. I'm going. Whether you like it or not."_

_"You want to make it four weeks?" Dad asked me. _

_I turned my head back to look outside the den. The growl rising in my throat. I couldn't think of anything else to say. So I said what I was feeling at the moment. "I hate you..."_

_Then I ran before they could say anything to get me to stay. I was going to the Moonlight Howl. Tonight. With Luke. I made it there in a matter of minutes, and went up to him with a smile. He had been waiting for me. "Hey, sorry I'm late. My parents didn't want me to come."_

_"Then why are you here?" he asked._

_"I had to get away from them. And I wanted to be with you."_

_He smiled. "Well, let's just have some fun, tonight. Okay? I'll walk you home later."_

_"Sounds great."_

_We spent the rest of the night together, having fun around the Moonlight Howl. The food. The water-slide. The swimming area... All the stories I'd heard about it were true. Except for the fireflies. I hadn't seen them. But... then again, the stories I'd heard said they only came once a week. Guess I just came on the wrong night. Oh well... Maybe I'd get another chance to see them. I'd just come back with Luke every night if I had to. I wanted to see if the stories were true to how beautiful it looked when they showed up. _

_After Luke and I finished howling together, I was leaning against him. My head on his chest. My heart beating. The sky had gotten darker. __I was surprised that my parents hadn't come looking for me. Maybe they decided to just let me go for the night, and deal with me when I got home. Speaking of which... I knew I'd have to get back some time tonight. Luke and I had done everything we could find here already so... Now was probably a good time to get home._

_I jumped when I heard a loud BANG! in the distance. "What was that?"_

_"Probably just some hunter, killing rabbits or something." _

_Another BANG! I hoped he was right. __I pulled my head off his chest and looked up into his eyes. "Well... I had a great time tonight, Luke. I had a lot of fun."_

_"Me too."_

_"I should probably get home though..."_

_"You can't stay a little longer?" he asked._

_"I wish I could, but... I should really get home."_

_"Come on, Angie..." I was glad he used the name I wanted to be called. "Just, come back to my place. Stay with me for the night."_

_"I can't... I'd just get in more trouble for that."_

_"Well... come by for a few minutes, then? Just... Let's have fun..." He stepped toward me a bit._

_"What?"_

_"Come on, Ange... Don't you want a little fun?"_

_I could see where this was going. I gently pushed him back. "No, Luke. I'm not doing that."_

_"Oh, come on..." he pressed forward again, trying to put his foreleg around me._

_"No, Luke. Stop it!" __I pushed him back, a little harder, hoping he would stop._

_"Just... come on, Angie."_

_He grabbed my paw and started pulling me toward him. I could see why he'd been so nice to me. He wanted me to get to like him enough for... that. I struggled for a moment, my wrist in his paw. I tried pulling myself free. "No, Luke! Let go!" He didn't stop. Just kept pulling me toward him as I tried to push him away. I lifted my other paw and hit him on the side of the face as hard as I could. He let go of me and brought his paw up to my face. I hoped it hurt. Bad. Hoped it scratched him. _

_"My parents were right about you... You just wanted one thing from me. I'm going home."_

_I turned and started walking away. "Come on, Angel—" I growled when he used my real name. I already hated it enough. But for it to come from someone that had just tried to get me to mate with him? That sent me over the edge. I turned back, stepped toward him, and scratched him. Twice. Once for each side of his face._

_"I'm not that kind of girl, Luke. You want one of them, go to the Northern pack."_

_He growled, and turned. I watched him as he left, mumbling to himself. "After all I did... I can't even get one lucky night?"_

_I shook my head with disgust. __"Angie!" I heard my sister's voice. I turned around, finding her running up to me. Worried about something. I could see the tears in her eyes. _

_"Carol!"_

_"Come on, Angie. It's our parents..."_

_"I know. I need to apologize... They were right about Luke."_

_"Forget about that. Mom and dad were killed."_

_"What?"_

_"A hunter came and shot them. Come on, Angie, we need to—" __She didn't get to finish before I ran off, heading home. "Angie, wait!" I ignored her. Mom and dad were killed... That's what those two loud bangs were earlier... Gunshots. Two of them. One for mom, and the other for dad. I could feel the tears stinging my eyes when I remembered my last words to them. 'I hate you...'_

_I arrived home. Mom's and dad's bodies were lying outside. The hunter was nowhere to be found. Why would he just leave mom and dad here? I slowed down as I approached my parents' dead bodies, blood dripping from multiple bullet wounds. Shotgun. Their eyes open with no life showing in them. They were lying close to each other like they had tried to protect each other. I went up to them, and my head dropped down on their bodies. My tears staining their fur. "Mom... dad... I'm so sorry... I shouldn't have said what I did. I didn't mean it... Please... come back." __My voice was weak. "Please... come back. I didn't mean it. Please. You can't be gone. I need you. We need you."_

_No responses. They were gone. Carol walked up by my side, crying as well. _

_"I don't hate you. Please... I love you. Please come back... Please... You were right about Luke. I should've listened. I should've stayed here with you."_

_I couldn't believe it... My parents were gone. And the last thing I had said to them when they were alive was that I hated them. Now, I hate myself for not listening to them. For not being here when they needed me. I could have stopped the hunter. I could have taken his gun from him or killed him. Then, mom and dad would still be alive._

* * *

_(Third Person. Present Day)_

Alex's eyes were tearing up as Angie told him everything that had happened. "That was the last thing I'd said to my own parents before they died. That I hated them. I didn't even mean it. I was just mad."

"I'm... so sorry." Alex lowered his head. "I wish there was something I could do to help..."

"So do I, Alex. Can you see why I feel so awful now?"

"Yes... I... I don't know what to say..." Angie pushed herself to him, putting her forelegs around him again for another hug. Alex put his right foreleg around her, holding her tight as he put his neck against hers. "I'm sorry, Angie... I know how hard it must have been for you to tell me all of that."

"It... wasn't as hard as I thought it would be..."Angie said. Alex brought his head back, and looked Angie in the eyes. Tears sitting just beneath the beautiful blue eyes, making the grey fur underneath her eyes darker. He tried to smile to ease the tension in the moment, but he couldn't. It was all too sad to even force a smile on his face. Instead, he leaned in and licked her cheek, taking away the tears that were resting there. Angie was shocked. "Alex..."

"There you are, Alex!"

He turned around to see Stella, Jet, Trey, Serah, Korosu, and the rest of the black wolves were standing together. Stella said, "Come on, Alex. It's time to go."

"Wha... now?"

"Yes," Korosu said. "Levant knows which way Jasper is now. Said it'll take us about ten hours if we're able to run the whole way. We'll have to cut through another territory though."

"Do you know which territory it is?" Angie asked, wanting to be able to warn them if it was a dangerous pack.

"Yeah. No worries though. It's actually the pack we're from," Korosu said.

Serah looked at him. "Really?"

Levant answered. "Yep. You'll be back with your parents soon."

She couldn't help but smile. _Trey can meet my parents... _She looked at Trey. He could tell what she was thinking. Trey sighed. "Okay... Let's go."

Alex started to walk forward. Then was unable to go any further. He looked back at his wrist, being held by Angie. He looked at her. "Angie... I need to go."

"You don't _have _to go, do you?"

"Yes. I do. My family... I... They need me. I can't stay here."

"Please, Alex..." Angie begged. "Please, stay."

"I wish I could..."

Angie reluctantly let go, her paw sliding against Alex's as he pulled himself away. Angie lowered her head. Alex went back to her, and put a paw on Angie's back. Another hug. A good-bye hug. Angie's head was hanging down, upset. "Please, Alex... Don't go... I love you..."

She lifted her head up to look at Alex. Tears forming in his eyes. "Angie... Why'd you have to go and say that? It just... makes it harder for me to say good-bye."

"Then _don't_ say good-bye. Stay here, with me."

"I can't, Angie... My family... Can you come with us?"

"I have a pack to lead, Alex. I can't."

"Then..." Alex let his head drop down. "We'll never see each other again?"

Angie thought for a moment, thinking it over. Staring at Alex's face, hoping it would never leave her, even though she knew it would. "I'll tell you what... Next chance I get, I'll come find you. I'll run as fast as I can. When I do, we'll know we were meant for each other. Okay?"

"Promise?"

Angie put her head under his chin. "I promise."

Stella, Serah, Jet, Trey, Korosu, and the five black furred wolves stood there, watching and waiting patiently. They didn't want Alex to feel like he _had_ to leave. But he really did. Kate and Humphrey would just come and get him anyways. They would be too worried to just let him stay. They would come and find him. Bring him home. Stella's and Trey's hearts were breaking as well, seeing their brother with so much sadness.

Alex reluctantly, and slowly, pulled out of the hug, his paw and Angie's paw slipped out of each other's grasp as he turned and walked towards his siblings and the rest of the group. "Let's go..."

He couldn't look back. It would just make it that much harder on him, seeing Angie watching him leave. Sadness in her eyes. As he passed Trey, Trey patted him on the back. Everybody said something to try cheering him up. None of them worked. He was too heart-broken to even smile. To even cry. The group left in silence, Levant leading the way towards Jasper.

* * *

**Read and Review**


	29. Chapter Twenty Eight

******I hope this chapter makes up for the long wait... It's not a long chapter, but I think it's a good one.**

******_The New Generation: Alex Trey Stella  
_********_Chapter Twenty-Eight_**

Humphrey and Kate were running through the trees, hearing the train's whistle in the distance. Difficult to see in the darkness of the night, but their excellent vision, along with the light from the moon, helped them avoid running into trees. Dawn and Seth had woken them up when they heard the train themselves, quickly saying goodbye before the two ran off to catch the train. They weren't about to miss the train and have to stay another day. Specially because Kate already missed her three children. "There it is!" Humphrey yelled, looking ahead at the train tracks, the front of the train already coming towards them. Kate and Humphrey both turned when they reached the tracks, running alongside the train as it blew its whistle again.

They kept running alongside it until they came to the side of an open train car. "You first!" Humphrey yelled to his mate. He wanted to be sure that she'd make it okay before he made his attempt, carefully watching his mate's every move. Kate moved closer to the train car so the jump would be that much easier. Then, with a split second of recoil in her legs, she pushed herself to the air towards the train, landing smoothly on her paws on the train car. She turned around to watch Humphrey, ready to help him if he needed it. But since she had taught him everything about being an Alpha, Kate was positive that Humphrey wouldn't need any help with his leap. She kept herself ready just in case, though.

Humphrey prepared himself for the jump, moving closer to the train just as his mate had done. Coiling all four of his legs before leaping at the train. Kate reached her foreleg out, ready to catch him if he didn't make it. It was a good thing she did because only his front paws made it on the train. Humphrey instantly started struggling to pull himself up as Kate pulled with all her strength. "Pull me up, Kate!"

"I'm trying!" she yelled to him.

"Try harder!" Humphrey, trying to pull himself up, along with Kate's pulling on his legs, finally brought him up on the train. He sighed with relief with the thought that he was finally safe as he fell to his chest, a little tired. A smile grew on his face when Kate came within sight. "Well, that was pleasant..." Humphrey joked, getting up to a sitting position, about to laugh. Kate let out her chuckle as she went over to a corner of the train's car. Humphrey went over and joined his mate, lying at her side and licking her cheek. He turned his head to let Kate give one back to him as she usually did. This time was different, Kate acted like he hadn't done anything at all. Had Kate just not even noticed or what? Humphrey looked at his mate. She didn't look too good. Not like she was sick, just like she was a bit scared of something.

"You okay, Kate?" he asked, concerned for his wife.

"Humphrey... I have a bad feeling about the kids... Something's not right."

"It's just your imagination, Kate. I'm sure they're fine. They're with Garth and Lilly, along with their cousins. They're perfectly safe. Don't worry."

"Yeah... Yeah, you're right. I'm sure they're fine." Kate laid her head down, not so sure about what she'd just said. Closing her eyes, she felt Humphrey set his head down against hers. Even though their pups were safely being kept under Garth and Lilly's watch, she still wasn't sure they were all right. Something was wrong. But what could it be? Stella, Trey, and Alex had to be safe right? They were with their cousins.

* * *

Jake had asked Kristy to howl with him. He just hoped that she didn't actually _like_ him, because Jake didn't want it to break her heart if she did and found out the real reason he'd asked her. The only reason Jake had asked Kristy to howl with him was because his mom told him he _had_ to ask someone. Violet and Luna said they would tell mom if he hadn't, so there was no choice. And when Jake saw Kristy, he figured she would be a good choice. At least she wasn't ugly. She was actually... pretty. One of the more good-looking wolves in the pack. When Kristy saw Howling Rock, she sped up; almost running. Jake kept pace with her, thinking it best not to leave her side. He smiled at how excited Kristy was over all this. Excited about the Moonlight Howl. The two passed Violet and Luna. "Was that... Jake and Kristy?"

Jake looked back at his older sister, Violet, when he heard her ask the question. He gave a her a smug smile, hoping it made her mad at least a little that he was going to howl with one of her best friend. After making sure that Violet saw the smile on his face before he turned his head back and took off after Kristy.

* * *

Violet saw the smugness in her brother's smile, and she instantly knew what had to have happened. Jake must have asked Kristy to make it weird for Violet. She pushed it out of her mind. She wasn't going to let it bother her. After all, she'd spent the last two months knowing that Kristy had been crushing on Jake. Violet just didn't say anything because it would make it awkward for Kristy to be around her. Violet smiled, watching her friend take off with her brother, nodding her head in amazement. She wondered for a split second how excited Kristy was about getting to howl with Jake.

"Violet!" For less than half a second, she thought it was Luna's voice. But quickly realized that Luna didn't have a guy's voice. She looked to Vince as he approached her. "Hey, Violet. Thought you were gonna bail on me."

"I would never do that."

Violet was walking between Vince and Luna now, smiling when she noticed he was walking closer than her sister was. She looked to her right at Luna, quickly trying to think of something to say to get herself alone with Vince. Nothing came to mind. Looking back to Vince, she hoped he could think of something. He didn't really seem to mind that her sister was here. But he wasn't talking either. The three continued on towards Howling Rock with an awkward silence. Violet too nervous to talk with Vince because of her sister's presence. Vince didn't talk because of Luna as well. But Luna just didn't talk because she never broke a silence around someone she didn't really know. She could thank her mother for the shy personality that she possessed.

* * *

It hadn't taken too long for Jake to catch up to Kristy because she had stopped at the river instead of jumping over it to continue to the Moonlight Howl. He came up to her side. "Something wrong?"

"No. I'm just... a little hungry. What do you say we get some food first?"

The thought of food made Jake's stomach rumble, but he was glad that it hadn't been loud enough for anybody to actually hear. He smiled and answered. "That sounds pretty good. Anything you have in mind?"

_Anything but berries... Please say anything but berries._ He patiently waited for Kristy's answer as she thought about it. "Fish sound good?"

Jake smiled and his tail wagged for a moment before he became aware of it and stopped it's motion as quickly as he could. He liked the answer she gave him. Fish was his favorite thing to eat; he got that trait from his mother. "Nice choice. I love fish."

"Really?" Kristy smiled. "So do I. It's my favorite food."

As if on cue, Jake's stomach growled again, this time loud enough to be heard. He gave Kristy a sort of guilty smile. She giggled. She looked back to the river inches from her paws. She lowered her head to the water to look for fish. Jake almost felt the urge to dunk her head underwater, just for fun, but didn't know if she'd get mad or upset. Either way, he'd feel bad if he did. So he looked with her, searching for any fish they could catch. The two wolves unconsciously started walking in the direction the river flowed, not finding any fish.

The two kept walking, finding themselves hidden by the trees by the time they found some fish. They were alone, under the moonlight which shone softly through the leaves of the trees above them. Even though it was night, they could still see just fine with the help of what light the moon offered them, reflecting off the rippling water. "See any yet?" Kristy asked him.

To be honest, Jake hadn't even been looking for the fish. He'd been looking around the area where they were now at. A couple flowers here and there, a small boulder. And, of course, trees. Jake quickly looked back down to the water to continue the hunt for fish. To his surprise, he saw a small group of four or five fish. "Yeah, there's a few right here."

Kristy trotted to his side to take a look. "Good eye," she complimented him.

The two shared a short, awkward moment, silently trying to decide who would get a fish first. Jake took a step back and gestured toward the fish as he sat down to watch. "Ladies first."

"Well, thank you," Kristy said, smiling at Jake's manners. She stepped toward the river water and eyed the fish, looking for one that looked tasty. When she picked one out—one that wasn't too big or too small and looked like it would taste good—she slowly moved her paw towards the water, feeling Jake's eyes on her every movement. When the cool feel of the water touched her paw, Kristy swiped at the fish, her goal to smack the fish out of the water and on to dry land. The results of her attempt came up as a failure. The fish just swam right around her paw, swimming back to where it first was.

She made another attempt, coming with the same results. She tried coming at it from the other side with her left paw, but still the same results. The fish just kept swimming around her paws, going back to its original spot in the water. Staring at her. She looked at Jake, who just smiled. Kristy told him, "I'm not very good at this..."

"Can't get it?" he asked, getting up to his paws.

"Nope. Think you could catch it?"

"Maybe."

Jake took a step to Kristy's side, looking at the fish to find a good one that he hoped she would like. Kristy sat back and watched as Jake made his attempt. Lowering his head to the water, Jake avoided letting his nose hit the water. Then, with a quick movement, Jake snapped at the fish with his jaws, catching a good-sized fish on his first attempt. He kept it in his mouth as he looked over at Kristy, who stared in amazement. He moved his head towards her an inch, offering her the fish. Jake wondered for a split second why he didn't just drop it in front of her. Just as he was about to do so, Kristy leaned in and grabbed onto the fish, taking it from the side of Jake's muzzle to avoid her nose accidentally rubbing with his own.

Jake froze when he felt the end Kristy's muzzle rub against his cheek as she grabbed the food. His heart skipped a beat. Kristy froze for a moment as well, feeling Jake's muzzle against her cheek too. As Jake slowly opened his jaw, Kristy withdrew the fish from his mouth, holding it in her own as the two looked at each other. She didn't even bother to eat the fish. She just dropped it, a bit surprised at the feeling that had just gone through her, emanating from the cheek that Jake's muzzle had just touched.

Neither her or Jake seemed to mind the fish being wasted on the ground as their eyes locked. His emerald-green eyes staring into her hazel-colored ones. Both wolves had no idea what to say after what they had just felt. Jake and Kristy had both felt a small surge of electricity like their contact was the greatest thing they ever experienced. After so long of hiding her crush on him, this moment was actually happening. Kristy couldn't help herself. She slowly leaned in towards Jake, and licked his cheek, making him freeze again when he felt that electric static feeling again, his chest feeling like it was filled with butterflies.

She just confessed her love for him without even needing to use words. It went much easier than she had dreamed. There had been no need to think of the right words. Still, she was nervous. Nervous that Jake wasn't feeling the same way. She pulled her head back after the lick on his cheek, not sure if she should smile or not. She made a small one, covering her front paws with her tail as she sat.

Just moments ago, Jake was trying to force himself to get through this date. But now... He didn't want it to end. The more Jake thought about it, the more he realized that he actually liked her. Jake and Kristy both leaned forward, doing what their hearts told them. As they closed their eyes, their heads tilted down a little as their noses made contact. The space between their chests and under their heads forming the shape of a heart if looked at from the right angle.

Kristy was the one to pull her head away first, a smile on her face, happy that Jake finally knew how she felt for him, and glad that he felt the same way about her. Jake was smiling too. _'You can thank me later,_' his mother's voice echoed in his mind, repeating what she had said before he left home. He was going to thank her when he got home, that was for sure. And another thing... This wasn't going to be his last date with Kristy. At least he hoped not.

"You ready for that howl?" Kristy asked, smiling as she got up to her paws and turned in the direction of the Howling Rock.

Jake's smile wasn't going to disappear anytime soon. He got up to his paws and followed after Kristy towards the Moonlight Howl. He couldn't wait to hear how her howl sounded.


	30. Chapter Twenty Nine

******_The New Generation: Alex Trey Stella  
_********_Chapter Twenty-Nine_**

"So... What's up?" Alex kept his head low as he walked with the group, not wanting to talk with anyone. The question wasn't meant for anyone in particular. It was for everyone. Trey, Serah, and Jet all looked at Stella. Probably a little surprised that she'd ask that question. Korosu didn't bother to respond. He just walked with the group from his pack. The five black wolves stayed silent as well. Nobody was going to speak. Stella thought it best not to say anything else because she didn't want to seem annoying for being the only one talking.

Trey and Serah walked side-by-side. Close. If they hadn't told everybody about them, just as Jet and Stella told everyone, then it would be pretty obvious that they were in love. You could just sort of get that feel from the air around them. Though it was weird sensing love coming from a couple and then sensing a sad feeling in the air coming from Alex. Stella looked over at him and could see a small tear on his cheek. Just sitting there. Then it rolled down the rest of the way and fell to the ground.

It was clear he was still upset. And it hurt Stella's heart to see that Alex was heartbroken. Her brother. The youngest of the family...

Alex felt as if there was nothing else in the world for him to live for. If he couldn't be with Angie, then what use was there in staying alive? Of course, he wasn't thinking about committing suicide. Duh. He wasn't going to kill himself because he lost a chance at love. He knew that he'd get another chance some day. Even if he had to leave Jasper to find it. When that day came... he'd be going to find Angie. Unless she came for him first.

"Cheer up, bud..."

Alex didn't even bother to look at his brother, Trey. He knew that all he'd see was a smile, trying to comfort him. It wouldn't be enough to mend a heart that was torn in half though... The only thing that could do that... was Angie. And there was probably no chance of him ever seeing her again. '_Next chance I get, I'll come find you. I'll run as fast as I can.'_

Alex just ignored his brother, not even bothering to give a response or even a simple nod of the head. He just kept walking with the group, unable to get his mind off of Angie.

"Come on, Al... It'll be okay."

It was his sister that time. He couldn't get past the pain of his heartbreak to answer though. So he just slightly turned his head away from her, letting another tear escape his right eye.

Korosu looked back at them to see if the kid was at least trying to get happier. Nope. Still the saddest face he'd ever seen. Korosu, remembering how he felt during his first heartbreak, let out a sigh before moving back to walk beside Alex. "You okay, Alex?"

Now _that_ got Alex's attention. He never once heard Korosu use his name. Or anybody's name, for that matter, but for the black wolves in his group. It surprised him enough to look at Korosu. The tears still coming from his eyes. He'd let out all the sobs. But the tears seemed endless for him.

Korosu kept walking. "The first heartbreak... One of the worse feelings I've ever had... When I had my first heartbreak, I thought the world was going to end... That nothing could ever make it better. That—"

"If you're trying to cheer me up, it's not working," Alex interrupted.

"The point is..." Korosu continued. "Although it may seem bad right now... It'll get better. Don't worry. It's pretty much a proven fact that everyone's first relationship doesn't end well." Serah and Trey looked at each other, a bit concerned with that statement. Stella and Jet did the same. But they weren't about to say anything about it. Not if Korosu was trying to cheer him up. "Of course... some relationships will work out, but not all of them do. What I'm trying to say is... Don't worry about it, Alex. You'll know when you've found the right girl for you."

Alex stopped in his tracks. Korosu took a few more steps before he realized that Alex stopped. Jet, Trey, Stella, and Serah all stopped as well. Then, hearing that the noise level had gone down, the five black wolves stopped like they were of a united mind. Alex wouldn't look up. His eyes were locked on his paws as his claws dug in to the dirt beneath him.

"I already did find the right girl..." He picked up his paw to find that it was full of dirt. The dirt started flowing between his toes and falling back to the earth. "I found the one for me... and let her slip through my paws..."

He tossed the rest of the dirt off to the side in sadness and collapsed to the ground, his face buried in his paws as he started to sob.

Korosu felt sorry for the kid. He remember what it was like to cry during his first heartbreak. And when someone was around to watch... it made it worse. He turned back to his group of wolves. "You go on ahead. Find a place for all of us to stay for the night. We'll continue on in the morning."

They nodded and continued on. Serah, Stella, Jet, and Trey followed after them, wanting to give Alex some time alone. He probably needed it. Korosu patted Alex on the back. "Come on, kid..."

"You don't understand..." Alex sobbed... "She was the perfect girl... Angie was the one and... and... I don't know if I'll ever see her again..."

"That's just the thing, Alex. I _do _understand. I've had my share of heartbreaks. I know how it feels. You think you've found the perfect one and—"

Alex sat straight up and interrupted him. "I don't _think_ I've found the perfect one."—Korosu almost jumped back from the shock of Alex doing that so quickly. It was scary. "—I _know_. Okay? She's the most perfect wolf I've ever met... and... we can't be together."

"You'll understand with time, Alex... Not everyone is perfect. You'll find someone else."

"I don't want anyone else... I want Angie."

"Give it time... You'll feel better."

"Doubt it."

Korosu sighed. "Forget it. You won't listen... Follow our tracks when you're done with your crying."

With that, Korosu walked away in the direction everyone else had gone. Leaving Alex alone. Alex padded over to the nearest tree and lay down against it, his face on his paws as the tears streamed from his eyes. He wanted to forget about Angie, just so his heart would stop aching. But he didn't want to forget her. That was the main problem. He was in a battle of deciding whether to forget Angie or not. He loved her too much to want to forget her. But his heart hurt too much to keep her in his memory.

"I just don't know what to do..." he muttered. _'I love you...' _He could still hear those words perfectly in his mind. And it hurt him even more. _'Next chance I get, I'll come find you. I'll run as fast as I can.' _He had to remember those words... Angie would come for him.

Alex looked back in the direction everyone had come from. Where Angie was... _It'd be so easy to just go back... To stay with her... Forever... _

It was tempting... but he couldn't. He looked in the direction the others had gone. _My brother... my sister... My dad... _Another tear came from his eye. _Mom... I need you..._ A slight wind picked up. A leaf crossed in front of him, heading in the direction the others had disappeared to. Where his siblings and his new friends were. It was like... like a sign. A sign that he should go with them.

But his heart was telling him to run back to Angie. Hug her... He needed her love right now. More than anything. But he couldn't just leave everyone... He couldn't throw his life away for a girl that he'd just met...

Could he?

_'I'll come find you. I'll run as fast as I can. When I do, we'll know we were meant for each other.'_

That did it. He wasn't even sure if Angie was _really_ the one. But he'd know it as soon as Angie came for him. She knew where he lived. What pack he was in. If destiny really wanted him and Alex together... then all he would have to do is wait. Just wait for Angie to come to him.

After wiping the tears from his eyes, Alex stood up. He turned right and followed the tracks toward his siblings and his friends. He was going home. Go home. And wait. Just wait for her.

* * *

"Just forget it, Carol..." Angie sobbed, her tears staining the fur on her tail. "I can't be with Alex. I know that. Just leave me alone." Her sister took a step toward her and started caressing Angie's back as her sister shuddered with sadness, the sobs still continuing. Angie had told her everything about Alex. About what happened. And Carol was just trying to comfort her. "Go away, Carol... I just... I just want to be alone right now... Please."

Carol took her paw away. Angie obviously wasn't going to change her mind about Carol being there with her. So she backed up. "Fine... I'll leave you alone. But just remember this, Angie. You're my sister. I want to help you, Angie. You just have to let me..."

With those final words, Carol padded out of the den to head home. She had to get back home. To her pups. To James.

Angie kept sobbing. _I love you, Alex..._ Why had she told him that? It was making her feel worse now... Sure, she'd be upset because of him leaving anyways. But knowing she'd told him how she felt... It made her feel terrible. It's not that she regretted falling in love with him. He was a great wolf. One of the best males that she'd ever met. This made her think... How could she have fallen so madly in love with a wolf in just one day? And get this upset about it that very same night?

_Because he's the one... I just know it._

But if he had been the very wolf the fate had picked for her... wouldn't they still be together and not separated?

"I need you mom... and dad... Now more than ever."

At least they'd be able to help her cope with a broken heart... They'd be able to help.

Every little thing mattered in her life... If she'd never disobeyed her parents... If she'd never gone on that date with Luke... She could have saved her parents from that hunter. And they'd still be alive today... and they would be comforting her.

The memory of Alex licking her cheek flashed back to her. She remembered how it'd made her heart skip a beat. How it sent an electrical jolt throughout her body. She'd been in love with him all day... but that one tiny lick on the cheek... the one that lasted for a second but felt like an eternity to her... that was what made her realize she'd loved him.

Angie was the happiest wolf in the world...

The memory made a weak smile appear on her muzzle, though the tears kept streaming from her eyes. That was it. The memory was the best she could have from him. It wasn't much... but it could make her smile.

The smile on her muzzle immediately disappeared when she remembered what had happened two seconds after that lick... Total heartbreak because Alex was leaving... He was leaving her...

Probably forever...

_No. Not forever_. She refused to accept that concept. Angie was going to find him. She was going to hug him. And she'd never let him go again._ 'I'll come find you.'_ she had told him... _'I promise.'_

A promise that she was going to keep. No matter what.


End file.
